#think he’d have the cutest old lady or old man names for any of his pets too

[spideyhexx]

billy gives pit vibes like bad reputation but a total sweetheart

omg you’re so right!!!

[hwrryscherry]

The one where Y/N is a princess.

characters: HARRYxPRINCESSY/N

blurb: Y/N is the youngest daughter of Prince Charles and Princess Diana which makes herself the youngest sister of William and Harry(the duke of Sussex). Harry(Styles) and she meet at the Dunkirk premiere when Y/N attended with her brother Harry. This time, Harry(Styles) is in London and show Princess Y/N what it feels like to be just a girl called ‘’Y/N’’ for a day.

word count: 2.4K

warnings: fluff, a little sad in the end.

author’s note: I received a request about Y/N being a heiress and my mind just go directly to royalty so I guess this could be cool? I tried lol. If you’re british and you felt ofended by any way while reading this I’m extremely sorry!!!! I hope you guys like it as much as I do. And also, I just wanted to share that I wrote this listening to ‘’Ophelia’’ by The Lumineers and ‘’The Book of You & I’’ by Alec Benjamin. 

    You and Harry scheduled to meet in the British Museum situated in the Bloomsbury area of London even though it was a public space, it wouldn’t be a surprise as people already knew that you and harry new each other. You both met on the Dunkirk premiere which you attended together with your brother Harry. Harry(Styles) was such a gentleman, he actually were nervous. As a British man he respects the royal family as much possibler than he can, and he would never want to make neither you nor your brother to feel uncomfortable.

    But anyway, you both scheduled there because Harry had been in England for a while and as you stayed friends it just felt right to meet up. You actually felt really tired, emotionally tired. You were so used to traveling the most amazing places with friends and now being basically locked up at The Buckingham Palace because of the corona virus felt draining for you. So when Harry came up with the meeting you were so glad to finally be leaving home, and Harry has always been the type of person who you felt like you could talk openly and be exactly who you want to be, and we don’t even have to say that the British museum it’s probably one of your favorite places in London. You were enamored by art, and there were so many interesting things in there and every time you’ll go there you’d find something new.

  It was 9am and the museum it’s actually closed now but you did have some perks. You were in the Egyptian part accompanied by your bodyguard Jasper, when you suddenly listened the rough voice of you dearly friend coming closer to you making you turn yourself to look at him getting closer. He greeted you with a simple hug in which you reciprocated by opening a slight smile looking at him.

— Hello, darling — Harry said while using his hands to style his short and messy hair with a smile on his face. — How are you?

— Hi, I’ve been good, just tired! But what about you? — You asked as you both started to walk through the beautiful masterpieces — How’s your mom and Gemma? — You had that really strong British accent, which Harry understood completly, and he really likes it. He thinks it’s the cutest thing. Actually, Harry thought everything about you were extremely cute, you both have a little crush on each other but as you already told him a lot of times before, just the thought of how many things he’d have to leave for because of the royal regulation made you sad for him. You’d never ask him for something like that.

— They’re good but... — Harry stopped walking looking fixedly to your face trying to analyze your emotions by their expressions — Why are you tired? I mean, I understand it must be really bad living in a castle but anyway, what happened? — Harry said smirking at you and your reaction of laughing and rolling your eyes at him.

— Haha, really funny! You should be a humorist — You answered mocking a bit and running your right hand through your hair as you started walking again — And I asked you how were you, you won’t answer? I’ll lock you in the dungeon for your audacity! — You both always joked like this because when you first started being friends, Harry had all that idea about the old royalty with dungeons and prisoners so you’d always make fun of him for that.

— Alright, alright! I'm good, they're good, we're all good. Now, tell me! — Harry said putting his right hand slightly on your shoulder making you stop walking and look at him with all your attention. You sighed trying to form your words to explain exactly what you were feeling to him.

— I don't know, I'm just... I'm so tired of the routine, you know? I wish I could just go out to do the craziest things and not be recognized. — You were looking straight to Harry's green eyes, it felt like they were watching your soul because e was giving you his full atention. The boy really did care about you. He stayes quiet for a while in complete silence, it was a comfortable silence though. It never felt like you and Harry needed to talk all the time when you got together because it was nice just to stay together and enjoy each other's company.

— Let me take you out! — Harry suddenly said after a few seconds making your eyes widen up as you looked at him.

— Excuse me? — You asked.

— Let me take you out! We can put on some disguises and take the best London tour we can find, I bet you've never done it! — Harry said with a little smirk in the end. He was right, you never took a tour through your own city which seems crazy — You know... I really like you and if you wanna have fun this could be great! You'll be just a girl called Y/N and I'll be just a boy called Harry. — He said trying to argue with your thoughts thinking if this would actually be a good thing to do. But you didn't really have anything to lose, did you? — So, do you wanna do a bunch of fun things with me today? — Harry held out his right hand to you indicating that as soon as you shake his hand you would leave that museum and probably have the best day of your life, and so you did.

So as soon as you could, you both were out of that museum with the most ridiculous disguises, if I might say. Harry changed his fashionable clothes for some neutral grey hoodie and you changed your cute black dress to a jeans and hoodie as well. Your heart raced a bit when you both left that museum, the fear of being recognized was in you. It's not that you don't love the people of this nation, it's just... a day off could fit you pretty well.

It was hard to convince Jasper to leave you both alone though, it was his job to keep you safe and actually you don't even remember the last time you left your home without him, you just needed freedom for a while but you did convince him. He spent some minutes actually talking to Harry tons of rules about keeping both of you safe and how he couldn't risk your life and all that stuffs.

For the first time in your life, you were on those big, red and popular British bus. You and Harry entered by the back door and within minutes, you both were on the upon side of it on the last chairs. You looked through the window admiring this city and thinking about how much you would never want to live anywhere else. Harry was making a lot of dad jokes beside you though. You tried to laugh as lowly as you could but it was almost impossible, come on “What's the name of a man with a rubber toe? Roberto” it's so bad that it turns out to be funny. But anyway, the bus took both of us to King Cross where you entered a very popular fast-food place called “Five Guys” as Harry guaranteed you was the best he'd ever had and even though you'd doubted it so much, you agreed to go with him. When you were there, you ordered the biggest burger it had on the menu, which actually surprised Harry, but he surprised it too as he ordered it on the name of “Archie and Eleanor” so you could maintain your disguise.

— So.. Archie and Eleanor? — You asked smirking when you finally took the first bite of your burger. It was delicious but Harry was definitely lying, this is not the best one ever, but yep, all for the experience.

— Come on, you loved it! It's very charming, don't you think? — Harry asked as he took a sip of his coca-cola. It's crazy how these stupid disguises was working, is it really that impossible to recognize someone with a hoodie, cap and sunglasses? You didn't want to know because you were having a nice time.

— You know what, I think we need to get those Chinese cookies because I wanna read my luck! — You commented making him shook his head in reaction to your ask.

— Ok so we need to dinner Chinese food so bad! — You argued taking Harry from surprise as he didn't thought you'd stay this late with him.

— You'd have to buy actual Chinese food, you can't just buy the cookie! — He answered raising his eyebrows at you taking his last bite of his burger.

It didn't take much long for you both to be moving again. It was definitely the best day you've had in a while. You both went to Kensigton High Street and bought the most stupid UK theme hats. Harry bought a fake glasses too; it was blue and had a UK flag handed on it making you laugh every time you looked at his face.

— Come on, I still look cute! — He said putting his hands on his hips and posing like a model, on the middle of the street.

— If you say so!

Next you both went all your way up to Abbey Road which is the famous street from The Beatles photo, and you and Harry as the great fans you are had to copy them. You asked to a random person to take a photo of you two with the best American accent you could impersonate to her. The photo looked so cool and a car almost hit you two but you were fine and for some reason you both laughed and ran to the woman with your phone.

— Oh, to be drunk in love! You both are a really cute couple. — The old lady said giving your phone back to you and walked away before any of you could contest her. You both looked at each other and Harry smirked at you.

— Oh, we're such a cute couple! — Harry said blinking his eyes on a very cute way and you just rolled your eyes at him and started walking again.

— Come on, Styles! I wanna go to the Queen's Gallery — You said walking your way up to the bus stop. Harry had a big smile on his face, he didn't remember the last time he actually had that much fun. He loved England. He loved those places and he loved having this much fun with you.

In the Queen's Gallery, you and Harry tried to not make that much of a noise, it was a museum right? But it felt hard to keep it quiet because you both were taking the weirdest and funniest photos with the arts in there, for a moment you even thought you both were going to be expulsed of the location, but you didn't. None of you realized how much the time was flying and it was probably 3 pm now.

The next step was the Columbia Road Flower Market. It was probably the coolest thing of your day. You both ran around taking a lot of photos and videos. You bought one of the most delicious breads in there. You were looking at some flowers when Harry came back to you with a bunch of pink tulips on his hand, it was your favorite flowers and he knew it.

You both went to so many places actually; you went to HMS Belfast, Battersea Park, Albert Memorial, Old Spiralfields Market, Serpentine Lake, Carnaby Street and Holland Park.

When it was closer to the sunset, you went to Princess Diana Memorial Garden. It was a hard place for you. It has always been and Harry even asked if you really wanted to go there, but you did. You needed to sit down for a moment on your life and miss your mom. You were little when she died so you're probably the only one of your brothers that remember her the least.

You both lied down on the grass. It had a fresh breeze in the air, but the sun was still out, it was that golden hour moment. You rested your head on Harry's thorax looking up to the sunset orange sky above you.

— You know this can be great... If we're willing to try! — Harry said in a very low tone. He was caressing your hair with his hand analysing your face, so he could get any reaction for you.

— It would be for a while. — You said sitting up to look at his face, your faces were a few inches apart, the golden coloration on his face giving him the glow he did have naturally — But what would happen 3 years from now when someone tells you that you couldn't perform anymore? Or you couldn't release your songs? It's not right, I can't ask you this! — Harry looked away for a moment, probably trying to contain his emotions and think, just think — But we have today, we have now. Maybe we should just enjoy what we have now!

He looked back at you, directly into your eyes and again, comfortable silence. The comfortable silence Harry thought was so overrated felt right any time he was with you. He put himself closer to you if that even it's possible. His ring handed touched your cheek, eyes never distracting, you leaned in and your lips touched his. It felt magical, it felt quiet and it felt right.

The sun was out now, bringing the night and the sky full of stars. You both were by The Mall avenue, running, and dancing to the song playing backwards; it was Ophelia by the Lumineers, after that day, this song was your song and any time any of you listened to it, each other was brought up to your minds. You called it a night when you both were by the top of the London Eye, where all the big lights inspired you. When the cold breeze hit your hair and the height scared you but Harry made you feel safe.

Harry dropped you off at the castle's gate at midnight, just as he promised. You stayed by the balcony of your room until the sunrise looking at the sky because you knew that Harry was on the other side looking at the sky too thinking about how you'd never get to finish the book of you and him, and if you weren't faded to end together at least you had today.

[onlyhereforangst]

WWR

this may be my latest one (aside from those that never saw the light of day), but sorry life calls sometimes. enjoy the rollercoaster of emotions at the end 😘

Oh Carl, poor Carl. How on earth is he going to survive with Nick? 🤣 Honestly though, Jack so sneaky with her therapy despite being halfway across the globe. I love McGee’s “obviously she thinks you need it Nick” because HAHA nail on the head right there Timmy, he definitely needs it. Needs it to prove to himself a living thing can depend on him and he won’t let it down. 

They clearly still don’t believe in personal space, Nick does NOT need to get that close to look at a simple picture of a body on the camera 👀 broooo you so hooked on her she’s like a magnet pulling you in. Alsooooo them both officially switching to first names even in the field is so key. They might not even realize they’re doing it but at the same time they’re so (relatively) comfortable in their feelings of each other that they’ll say it in front of everyone, no qualms about it. I will also never get tired of hearing Nick call her Ellie. For someone so closed off initially, to now have slowly grown to call her on a first name basis when not a single other soul (sans Toby apparently) gets that sort of treatment 🥺😍 Plus he’s teasing her about food just slightly and it’s like old times again. Ellie getting back into her foodie status is perfect, thank you NCIS for finally giving us that. 

Were back to Carl and I’m chuckling at Nick’s worry for killing it. That is all, it’s hilarious like Gibb’s creepy laugh. 

Ok and now it’s Nick almost making fun of Ellie again, just barely and then he just…listens to her 😩 he just says, oh shit she’s really into this and borderline obsessed and I think that’s actually really f-ing adorable so let me just quietly take this all in because I can’t get enough of this woman and when she’s excitedly rambling about something I’m just going to soak it in because she doesn’t do this often so instead of teasing let me just look, listen and smile like the idiot in love that I am. He’s even kind of holding back a smile when she corrects herself about Kosmic vs Killer Korn. Like goddamn this woman does things to my insides even when she’s just talking about corn and poking me with her finger. Also we’re back to Nick taking a step back and letting Ellie take lead with questioning the food truck people- I love that he respects her so hard that he’ll follow her lead and knows she is a BA with this stuff. 

Some more cute partner stuff as per usual, and I’m sorry Nick do you not have your own computer and desk??? I mean, I don’t mind and I know Ellie doesn’t either but Gould you BE more obvious??? Plus he just nods along when she’s talking because his woman knows what is up y’all and you should listen and bow down. 

Nick calling Fornell, Toby is hilarious to me- such growth. “Emily is finally squared away” FUCK YOU NCIS. FUCK YOU. THE MOST POINTLESS LAZY STORYLINE EVER OKAY. AND I REFUSE TO DIVULGE THIS SHIT MORE BECAUSE IT PISSES ME OFF TOO MUCH. IF THEY DON’T HAVE THIS AS A LARGER PLOTLINE I WILL BE RIOTING. And yes I knew something major was going to happen but good lord that was so unnecessary. I digress. Ellie pondering out loud about Gibbs’ sad personal life and Nick and McGee’s reactions had be ugly cackling. Like dyyyyyyyying. I can’t with her 🤣🤣🤣 she saying what’s everyone is thinking. Nick giving her a little grief is also so perfect for them “yeah you DID say that out loud.”

Ok now to my favorite part, Nick once again following Ellie’s lead and being initially like oh you writing an article ok we’re going with that ok cool. And then Ellie says hold my earrings we getting crazy but at the same time this is rolling off my tongue like I’ve said it a million times and doodled it in cursive in my diary, my HUSBAND and I can help so like you know let us on your truck mister we’re vaccinated anyways. AND NICK I MEAN HIS FACE. The initial surprise of oh no did she *actually* just say that??? Did she??? why yes she did and I’m sorry why do I like the sound of it so much??? What is this bubbling feeling inside my chest of oh damn I would very much like to be her husband and have her babies and have her announce to random strangers on the street that I am hers??? Is this normal? Do I need to call a medic?? Can she say that again is there a reason she would need to? Prove our cover one more time baby, give me a quick kiss, serious it’s for the good of the case. But ok fine no kiss but yeah I’ll roll with this and call you smoothly with your first name and just play into it. I love them both so much in this whole moment. I love them undercover together and just being all cutesy and Ellie’s deepest desires coming out while she’s just you know, investigating the case. 

Ok I am going to completely ignore the reason we are somber in this bullpen in fear of losing my shit again (see above) but we’ll break down the ellick part of it. Nick near her desk because he needs to be by her side even if it’s just her proximity 🥺 And then he takes a long look at Carl before looking at Ellie and man that is poignant even if it seems like just a fish. This living being that he’s been so stressed about keeping alive, realizing he HAS kept it alive. Realizing that he CAN be a person that someone (or a fish) depends on. Realizing he is built for long-term, he is built for the interdependency of a serious relationship. And looking up to Ellie and seeing that need for comfort, for strength, for a person to depend on. He knows her own strength and independence, knows yeah- she could do it on her own if she had to. But he also acknowledges he can be there to help her, he won’t break and he won’t let her down- just like he hasn’t let Carl down. So what does he do? He takes the corn he’d most definitely picked up *before* the news of Emily’s death (and oh good lord is that not the cutest fucking thing? He’d listened to her gush and obsess over Kosmic Korn (and yes if you freeze frame, he got her favorite because he’s observant) and he said, let me take notes, let me get my wife I mean girlfriend I mean partner some corn because it makes her happy, and if I can do even the smallest thing to make her smile goddamnit imma do it. I’m going to show her that any little teasing I give her is for show and I listen and I love this woman enough to go back to Kosmic Korn BY MYSELF—willingly Nick Torres will go back to a food truck—and get this lady some damn corn). But yes he got this before Emily’s death and now not only is it just to make her smile, but it’s a shred of “I hope I can bring you some comfort because otherwise I’m not sure how even though I desperately want to give you comfort.” And Ellie, the small smile of recognition at what Nick did is so sweet. And it morphs into a hesitant, yes corn is great but I really need to feel you, I need to touch you and know you’re still here. Feel you in my arms, feel your chest rise and fall as you breathe me in and I breathe you in. Feel you being alive after all we and this team have been through. McGee might go hug his kids but god I need to hug you Nick. I need to nestle my head even closer to get as physically close to you as possible, feel every inch of your warmth while I wrap my head around how short life truly is. And Nick looking down and stutter slightly at the overwhelming emotion he feels having her in his arms. The peace it brings him and the peace it brings her all-consuming. The realization this is where he was always meant to be and the same to her. How even in a somber moment he’s grateful to be her strength and yet he knows she’s also his strength. That hand that didn’t need to but came up all the same to cradle her head and stroke her hair- holding her head right at his heart. His heart that’s inevitably thumping in his chest for all the right reasons. Pressing her into him, doing everything he can to keep her from shying away and retreating behind those walls they both have. Wrapping his other hand around her upper back, shielding her from the hurt that is the world the best he can. If she never leaves his heart, she can’t be hurt. And he can’t lose her. He’d do anything to never leave that spot, that embrace he so desperately craves and needs. The grounding embrace of finally being in one another’s arms for more than a brief adrenaline-induced second. Neither wanting it to end, and yet knowing it will have to. And honestly I can only picture Nick’s hand still gently brushing her hair as Ellie leans back ever so slightly to look up at him, his warmth still radiating over her as he looks down. Wordlessly they both collect their things to go, never wanting a sound to break that moment. Hands maybe even brushing as they enter the elevator- the unspoken shift between them refusing to be broken if words aren’t muttered. They’re still locked in that embrace if the world stays silent. And that last look of longing at car doors, knowing the moment they step in and drive away it does have to sever- the shift is there but the embrace is split. Both swirling with thoughts as they drive their separate ways home as to where to go next…

Aaaaand then cue a Gibbs-centric episode with trash references to how vets do their job, I’m not bitter. She says as she ruins a sweet emo moment at the end of the wwr with her bitterness 🙄 ANYWAYS I’m gonna leave it with no side notes because honestly I don’t remember any and also it is literally the day of the next episode I’m so terrible at getting this done how do y’all keep waiting for me & reading this trash 😅❤️ 

[liliesoftherain]

I'm back again with a daddy bakugou prompt but I'm asking you to break hearts now. Daughter in this scenario is working as a intern in bakugous agency and they go out on patrol. However a villain attacks and bakugou tells his daughter to go cause he's not going to make it and he tells daughter reader to tell her mom he loves her. But the daughter jumps in front "tell her yourself" and saves her dad. Please end it with daughter surviving. Fluffy but with angst.

A/N: So wow.. This was over 5000 words.. I got carried away whoops. I hope you guys like this, I tried adding more of the fight scene because well, I wanted to practice because I’m not good at them. Also, let me know if you guys like the way I described the quirks, was it too much? I feel like I gave the bad guys ordinary quirks, but what can you do. I’M SORRY I FEEL LIKE I COULD’VE DONE SO MUCH BETTER AHHH. Enjoy y’all!

Title: For the Love of a Daughter

Pairing: Dad!Katsuki Bakugou x Mom!Reader

Katsuki Bakugou!:

“Have fun at your internship today, Bakugou-chan!” 

“Thanks! Enjoy school for me.”

“Not likely, you’re the one who gets the day off while I’m stuck here!”

“Not my fault! Find an agency!” She laughed at her friend as she walked out of the dorms.

The young girl made her way to the Ground Zero Hero Agency that was located nearby U.A. High. It was a convenient commute, and an even more convenient place intern at. Her blonde hair secured high and red eyes set in a determined gaze as she walked through the front doors, being so well known she didn’t even have to show her badge to the lady at the front desk.

“Good morning Akari-chan!” The young woman smiled brightly, waving her through.

“Good morning to you, Chizue-san.” Your daughter smiled in return, walking forward towards the elevator.

After pressing the desired floor and heading to the locker rooms, Akari had gotten changed into her hero gear and made her way to the lead hero’s office. She knocked twice, before opening the door to see him at his desk.

“Still doing paperwork old man?” 

“Watch your mouth brat, I’m almost done.” Katsuki tsk’d, clicking his tongue to the roof of his mouth as he spared his daughter a glance before looking back at the computer screen.

“What are you going to have me do today pops.”

“It’s Ground Zero while you’re here, how many times do I have to tell you that.”

“Yeah yeah, Ground Zero-Jiji.”

“OI-”

“C’mon dad really, am I going to be able to go on patrol today? I haven’t been in for a week!”

He smirked at her, standing once he submitted the last of this morning's work.

“Yeah brat, a patrol with your favorite hero.”

“Deku is my favorite hero-”

“Not funny, shithead.” He snapped, flicking her forehead as he walked by her. She huffed in false hurt, internally laughing at how she could get him so riled up, even when he knew she was joking.

“Because of that, I’ll have you file all the paperwork yourself when we get back.” Katsuki snickered, pressing the button to head down to the main lobby.

“You can’t do that,” Akari crossed her arms with a light glare, “I’m not allowed to handle paperwork, I’m a second year dad. Did you forget due to your old ass age?”

Entering the elevator Katsuki flicked her forehead once more, this time putting more force.

“Ow-”

“Watch your fucking mouth, I remember perfectly thank you. This old man could kick your ass. Plus, as long as I supervise, I can make you do whatever fucking paperwork I want.”

“I’ll tell mom on you.” Akari crossed her arms, nose pointed in the air.

“Do it brat, she won’t take your side.” Katsuki mocked her look without even realizing it.

The fact that him and his kid were so similar was almost scary, it surely gave you enough headaches to last a lifetime.

The doors open with a chime and the two headed out, punching out by the front desk. The system was there to keep record that they were going to be away from the agency on a patrol. It was a handy system, letting other pros of the office know what you were doing in case an emergency happened.

“Have a safe patrol, Ground Zero, Surge!”

“Thank you.” The two replied in sync, walking out of the building.

The two left their playful bickering inside, turning on a much more serious demeanor while on patrol. Katsuki wanted to teach his daughter everything he knew, because before long she would be her own hero taking her place to come out on top.

Nothing but the greatest for his kid.

The patrol started normal, and if Akari wasn’t as well groomed in the line of hero work, she’d dare say boring. However, she knew better than to think of it that way. 

Peace may be tranquil, it may be calm and still, but it was never boring.

It was a blessing.

However today, was not one of those blessed days.

They had already been out for almost a good thirty minutes, interacting with civilians and helping with smaller issues, when screams were heard. The two quickly rushed to the scene, smelling the smoke before they could even see it.

Large flames danced along collapsed buildings, civilians were running wild, desperately trying to get away from whatever had caused the situation in the first place.

“Go help with an evacuation, make your priority the safety of the citizens!”

“Yes sir!” Akari knew better than to argue about wanting to help with the villains who were making the scene, the civilians were the priority.

Katsuki had charged forward, assessing the situation to see that there were 3 villains and their main target seemed to be unknown. It wasn’t money, there was a bank right down the street. They were standing closer to a now burning abandoned building, possibly there just for a harmful deeds with no goal. Or, they were causing a distraction for something bigger.

Katsuki enclosed on the three, quickly blasting an explosion to try to quickly knock them off their feet. However, they must have seen him becoming because all three immediately countered the attack. That gave Katsuki a moment to analyze their quirks, and how big of a nuisance they’d be.

The female of the group seemed to be able to manipulate shadows, he could tell as she manipulated what looked like to be her own as a shield to block his attack. He noticed she didn’t bother using any other shadows, even though there were plenty around her that were larger than her own, so he figured that was the extent of her power. The amount of shadow she could manipulate seemed to be as small as she was. Either way, it could be used not only as a defensive quirk, but depending on how she could handle her quirk, a good offensive one as well. 

There was a man with a mask over his face, bending the air around him to make the attack head over his head. Wind was always a pain to deal with, even if someone wasn’t as skilled with it in turn making the quirk weaker. It was hard to aim calculated attacks without having them be blown away. Katsuki knew he’d had to keep an eye out on that one.

The last man, who looked to be the leader, took the blow straight on. His skin changing to that what was hardened in what looked to be steel, most likely high carbon steel, seeing as there were no scratches or abrasions even with the high impact explosion. He may be the pack lead for a reason, most things would bounce off of him, no damage, no injury, less mess. However, there was a thing about hard materials were also very brittle- if he kept on his toes, not allowing this guy to take a break and continued to hit him with hard impacts, he’d either let his armor down himself or finally break.

Katsuki readied for battle as the two underlings rushed forward, attacking him simultaneously. Katsuki was able to use enough force to send the shadow user back a few feet into some debris, before blocking a punch from the main man himself. The hardened punch caused him to grunt, the force from the punch was almost as much as Eijirou’s.

Almost.

Katsuki sent an explosion from both palms to each guy, countering immediately with physical attacks. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, the man with the wind quirk was causing him more problems than he’d like. He had a good sense of control on his quirk and it was difficult to find openings as not only his quirk, but his attacked were being pushed back because of it.

The fight lasted with neither one side or the other going down, the shadow user came up from behind as she recovered, almost knocking Katsuki off of his balance. He was growing irritated, these lowlifes were actually putting up a fight-where were the other pros in the vicinity?

Where was Akari.

Like she read his mind, his daughter quickly came from nowhere it seemed, surprising the wind user as she used her own explosions on him from behind. 

She was his daughter alright.

She got a really amazing quirk, even more so than his, even if he’d never admit it. Your quirk was a really good match with his, even though your quirk was the last reason why he married you.

Your quirk was called Adrenaline Rush, you were able to enhance your physical body because of it, your adrenaline working more overpowered than anyone else’s. Your increase in blood flow and oxygen to your muscles causing you to be- well basically supercharged.

The reason why it paired so well was because one prominent feature that happened during a rush-

You sweat. A lot.

So in turn, when your daughter had both, the increased sweating mixed with his explosive quirk-

Let’s just you guys made one bad ass kid.

Her quirk was Explosive Adrenaline, he thought it was the cutest name, a mix of both of yours. She was sort of able to control her physical body like you were, but she could either put in a ‘super charge’ into her limbs, or into her explosions. 

This time she put more of her overcharge into her fist, having it painfully collide with the back of the wind quirk’s head. Katsuki, now even more on a high alert, made sure to keep the other two occupied on him while he let Akari handle the other. 

The two-on-one was going better now that he didn’t have his attacks weren’t being blown away, and he could tell he was wearing both of his opponents down. The shadow user manipulated her shadow into a bat, and went to swing it at his face, but Katsuki grabbed the other guy moved him into the spot instead, forcing him to take her attack while he followed up and used an explosion from behind. The two crashed into each other, falling on the ground while Katsuki went for another attack to make sure they stayed there. 

Although, the sound of his daughter's cry caught his attention and he turned in time to see her back collided with an unstable building, the walls shaking from the impact and threatening to fall. He sprinted over to her, blasting the wind user away while covering her body with his own as soon as the building crumbled down. The pain spread throughout his body, and he ground his teeth together as he tried to make sure Akari was alright. 

He blasted through some remains, the overuse of his quirk causing his hands to shake but he bared with it. The rush in his body numbing the pain as he dragged the both of them behind another building to recoup. He slumped against a wall, taking in heavy breaths as he scanned her over. Besides for some cuts she looked fine, and he felt a breath of relief fall from his lips. 

“Are you alri-”

Before he could finish his sentence the three, now all up and running, came from behind the corner in order to fight once more. This wasn’t right, something was wrong.

Katsuki just knew it, if they were after something they would have ran off the moment they got, unless they were distracting them for a reason-

There was something else they were covering for, or worse yet, someone.

Katsuki frantically looked around while trying to fend off the persistent villains, trying to see who the hell they were messing with.

“You heroes really are idiots!” The shadow user screamed out, her shadow flattening out and pushed the father-daughter duo back.

They both landed further down the alley with a grunt, and Katsuki felt his lungs working overtime to get air into his lungs. Then he finally saw it, another person coming out of the shadows with a wicked grin.

“Ground Zero- good to see you buddy. Really, it’s been a while.” Katuski stood, throwing three explosions in his direction while throwing five more in the other to hold off the three lower villains.

“You think this had any effect on me- come now Ground Zero, you mustn't remember me if you think that could hold me, and frankly, that pisses me off.”

The sound of cracking bones was loud in Akari’s ears, more so than her father’s and her own explosions. The sickening sound of it taring through the skin was horrid and she held back a gag at the smell that followed. His bone turned sharp, coming out of him like extra limbs as they stretched and grew, heading straight towards her dad. She vaguely saw the look of panic on her dad’s face, and she knew that he must've had great trouble with him in a previous battle, if the villains monologue wasn’t anything to go by. 

She felt the wind from behind and saw the others closing in, looking back to the front, the man's bones were growing thicker as ran forward.

“Surge-” Her dad let off more explosions and she followed suit, gritting her teeth as she sent multiple to the party behind her, “Get the hell out of here- go request back up. I don’t know why no one else hasn’t fucking arrived.” 

A bone sliced through the air unharmed from the blasts, managing to clip Katsuki’s shoulder painfully. His hands were tied, if he ran forward to attack the man, he’d be leaving his daughter to a 3-on-1 fight, and while she was no weakling, that was hard on anyone. If he focused on the three, they’d have his full attention and she would be left alone with the creep. Either way he’d be leaving her as an opening, and he wasn’t about to risk that. He was sure he’d have a fighting chance if she wasn’t there on the forefront of his thoughts, if he was able to go wild. At the very least, he’d be able to buy her enough time to get the hell out of here and request some assistance. 

To get somewhere safe.

 Akari gasped as she saw her dad get his shoulder sliced, drawing plenty of blood from the wound. He was already badly injured, plenty of regular bruises and scratches, but worse wounds from the falling building earlier. Plus, this maniac with the crazy quirk was striking only him, deep cuts appearing on his skin, angry red coming in its place. She started sending more powerful explosions to the group behind her, trying to keep them away as she racked her brain for any ideas on how to fight. She knew she wasn’t strong enough to take on a group alone, and this guy seemed to think he could give her dad a struggle, so what were they going to do? 

All she could do was send a constant barrage of supercharged explosions, and it was working for the most part, the smokescreen helping to keep them blinded and unable to press on with any attack. But the smoke was being wiped as fast as she could create it, the wind picking up do to the man with the quirk, blowing it away and trying to create an opening for his team.

Damn wind quirks.

“No- I can’t leave you Ground Zero! We have to find a way out together-”

“This is no time to argue with me dammit!” 

Her eyes widened as she looked up at him, he was looking down at her with a worried look on his face. He was shaking due to overuse and exhaustion, and he was bleeding out in multiple places as the bone kept meeting his form. She willed her explosions to come larger, feeling adrenaline course through her veins as she began to sweat more, and took all of the energy and moved it into her palms. The smoke was thicker, the pain was larger, and the panic was coming in waves. 

“I’m sorry dad-I can’t leave you!”

“You get your ass out of here! You got that!? Dammit-your mother must be calling by now, you haven’t had a fucking lunch break yet and you know how pissy she gets when you don’t eat. Kid, you know you’re a hero in my eyes but you’re still fucking learning! So get out of here so you can keep moving forward and take over the number one spot-GO.” He gave no room for argument, and the sadness in his eyes scared her more.

She saw another part of the bone coming from the smoke, this time aimed right at her dad’s heart. She yelled out, and rushed for it before it could reach him. 

He wanted her to learn, but if she couldn’t learn from him, learn from the best, how the hell would she ever make it to the number one spot? 

It was over before it began, the searing pain in her side caused her to grunt in surprise as she was lifted up into the air. The gravity forcing the bone to travel deeper into the wound, this time bringing a scream from her lips. Although she couldn’t hear it due to the ringing in her ears-plus she was too busy trying to focus on breaking the bone. 

If her father’s quirk couldn’t break it, she would have to show that old man who’s boss and do it herself. 

She wrapped her hands around the bone, drawing all the power she could muster before releasing multiple, large, supercharged shots into it. She heard the crack, and the screams and shouts around her blended together. All she cared about was the the bone turned to ash and she was finally dropped onto the floor. The impact took the air from her lungs and her vision blurred before it all went black.

While all she could see was black, Katsuki saw red. 

One moment he was telling her to leave, to save herself without really telling her that it was over, and the next he sees his baby on the ground.

His baby.

Katsuki’s mind flashes to every moment he’s ever had with her, and for some reason the most prominent memories were all the moments he's ever cried;

The first time he held her he cried because he was scared that he would never be enough for the angel he held in his tainted hands.

The first time she had talked, she had spoken had been his name and he had cried tears of happiness because his whole world was complete as long as he had her. 

The first time she had walked, it was into his embrace, so he cried tears of joy at being the arms where she felt safe enough to walk into.

The first day of school she had said goodbye with no problems, and he cried at the fear that she didn't need him anymore. 

The first time she had shown her quirk, he cried right along with her as the explosions had burned her hands; he knew the pain of a powerful quirk, both physically and emotionally, and he wanted nothing more than to blast that pain away.

The first time she had shown interest in training, she had asked him to train her and he secretly cried because he was overjoyed that she wanted his help over anyone else.

The first time that she was ever excited about school was when she got her acceptance in his alma mater, and he cried because he was so damn proud of her.

The first person she said when he asked who she wanted to intern with was him, and he cried because he felt so lucky to be her first choice.

This was the first time he had seen her hurt so badly, and he knew he was crying in agony at the sight.

She had so many firsts in her life already, but she still had so many firsts left ahead of her. 

He wanted to keep crying for all the good and all the firsts she had yet to do.

He wants to cry as he watches her graduate.

He wants to cry as she makes it as a pro.

He wants to cry as he walks her down the aisle.

He wants to see her grow, he wants her to have the world at her feet.

He didn't want to cry in regret at her funeral because he didn't have what it takes to save her.

He would not let himself see her death, there was no way he was going to let her die.

"AKARI!"

Any hurt he had been previously feeling was pushed to the side, the only thing Bakugou could focus on was keeping his little girl safe. 

Sending a large enough explosion to keep the ones behind at bay, he moved her from the middle of the ground. He wanted to hold her tight in his arms but he needed to make sure they were safe first, so he ran towards the man with bone, sending a punch that was backed with an explosion at his face, twisting around to kick him in the gut before sending off another explosion for good measure to knock him down.

Katsuki turned around, and wasted no time blasting an explosion larger than he had ever done before at the trio, making sure none of them could possibly think of getting close to Akari. He wasted no time sprinting forward and grabbing the man of steel, tossing his hardened body into the wind user, before grabbing the girl by the face and slamming her into the wall. He sent off an explosion before tossing her as well at the pair on the ground. 

He backtracked and brought the man of bone back to his feet, the man only staring with wide eyes as Katsuki gripped his throat tight, having to force himself to stop before he took it too far. More bone tried to desperately pierce his skin, but the chokes and frantic kicking of his legs showed how his mind was off due to panic, his quirk doing nothing more than grazing in an ungraceful frenzy. The labored breaths framed Katsuki’s face and he squeezed a fraction tighter, in hopes to knock him out for a while. 

Inside his mind he wishes it was for good.

Once the eyes rolled back and the man went limp, the viper-tight grip was released. He let him fall harshly onto the ground, no care in his body for anything other than their suffering. The other group was groaning on the ground, writhing in pain, but it wasn’t enough. 

Yet before he could do more, police ran forward into the smoke, catching the villains and binding them with quirk suppressant cuffs. 

Another hero ran through the smoke, looking as bad as Katsuki did. Bloodied and torn green hero suit, curly hair flat against his head with sweat and even more blood. He was holding onto his stomach, breathing harshly with one eye closed to keep it clean from what trickled down from his hairline.

“Kaach-fuck, MEDIC!”

Katsuki didn’t listen, focusing all of attention to his little girl. She was still breathing, the wound deep but fortunately not deep enough to have her bleed out in the seconds he was fighting. He raised his heavily shaking hands and pressed them to her side, tears falling down his face as he whispered promises into her unconscious ears. 

He refused to let anyone pick up up, choosing to strain himself longer and set her down onto the stretcher himself, also refusing attention as he insisted on riding with her. As much as they wanted to tell him to trust them, to let himself get help, they wouldn’t. The look in his eyes proved that anything spoken to him would be futile, so they ushered him inside the ambulance before speeding off to the nearest hospital. He could wait, he needed to make sure she’d be okay.

Akari had to be okay.

As soon as they had gotten her stretcher into the operating room, is when Katsuki collapsed. His body was running on pure fear and adrenaline, and the damage he had taken was more than he could handle. As soon as he saw she was getting the treatment she needed, the small amount of relief had been the switch that turned his body off. His shakes stopped, breathing hitching along with eyes fluttering closed and he felt weightless, landing with his back on the cold tile. Nurses and doctors rushing to get him help.

You had watched the news, worry coursing through your body as the woman reported of how small yet powerful groups of villains were targeting top pro heroes. You tried to calm yourself, saying your husband was more than capable of handling some weaklings. But you remembered today was the day Akari was with him, and you knew he’d be more concerned about her safety than the fight at hand. You rubbed your enlarged stomach with shaking hands, trying to remind yourself the stress wasn’t healthy for the two of you. 

Although that worry only intensified when your home phone began to ring, the ringing sounding further away the closer you went. Lifting it with a shuddering breath, you answered.

The man on the other end told you how your husband and daughter were in critical care at the moment, and that you needed to get down to the hospital as quickly as you could. You could only hang up, no answers needed. Knowing if you spoke it would all rush out. You were in a trance, grabbing your purse and keys one moment, and the next time you blinked you were rushing through the hospital doors. 

Waddling as fast as you could to the nurses desk, you quickly asked for more information. The nurse soothingly gave you all the information she could, getting up to guide you to a seat as you were finding yourself swaying in place. She knelt down in front of you, asking you to breath in and out with her. You don’t remember complying, but the nod of her head gave you the indication you were. Her lips moved but no noise came out, static white noise is all that you could hear-and in a way it was calming.

The hustle and bustle of rushing professionals was all in the background, fading slowly as if you had muted the television. The nurses words, the speakers overhead, the squeaking of stretchers, the sirens from outside, they were all silent. 

Quiet.

It was too quiet now.

You needed to hear two things only.

Your family’s voices. 

Your husbands throaty scoffs and your daughters teasing laughs.

You needed your family.

It must have been hours before a doctor came to you, but you had sat for what seemed like years of your life were chipping away. 

All at once the noise came back at full volume, almost too loud to hear the doctor in front of you.

“They’re ready to be seen, but be warned, they’re most likely still pretty groggy. If that’s the case, know that it is perfectly normal.”

You followed the doctor to a room on another floor, the entire walk felt too long, you had to see them now. 

Katsuki had woken up, pain shooting from multiple places in his body. He grunted in pain, the closing of his eyes, along with the growing weight of his limbs, were trying to coax him asleep and he was allowing the pull to lull him. 

His eyes shot open before he fell back under, his heart rate spiking on the monitor as he panicked.

“A-akari.” His voice was hoarse, broken glass in his throat causing pain that no amount of throat clearing could get rid of.

“I’m right here daddy-I’m right here.”

His eyes snapped to his left, seeing his daughter sitting up and bandaged in many places, although not as bandaged up as he was. She started to sniffle and held out her hand to him. Despite the pain, he reached out and held her right hand just as tightly, lips quivering in relief at the sight of her.

She was okay.

“Don’t you ever do that again, you understand.” Katsuki demanded, voice still scratchy but just as serious. 

She said nothing but smiled, although her smile quickly fell and was replaced with a wobbly bottom lip.

“You l-look like shit.” Tears fell from her eyes.

Katsuki barked out a mix of a sob and a laugh that hurt his body, hand squeezing hers as he replied.

“I love you brat.”

“I love you too old man.”

The door opened, causing the two to sober their tears as best as they could, and the pair looked over to see you and a doctor walk in. 

“Oh my babies.” You cried, rushing over to hug your daughter in a hug. Katsuki let go of his daughter’s hand, slowly bringing it back to his side, hissing quietly at the pain. 

You kissed her face all over, holding her cheeks and muttering sweet nothings into her hair.

“Mom, I’m okay-”

“Shut up brat, let me kiss you.” You pressed her against your chest, rocking her slowly as you kissed her head. 

She gripped your shirt back, holding the material tight between clenched fists. You stayed that way for a while, long enough to where the doctor excused himself and said he’d be back later for more information.

After a moment, you pulled away, giving her one last kiss before looking over at your husband. He was staring at the two of you with a small smile, love in his eyes. 

“(y/n)..”

“You stupid man.”

“Oi!”

You remove yourself from your daughter, walking over to Katsuki before hugging him just as tight.

“OW-damn woman, I’m hurt here.”

“Sh-shut up.” You cried into his chest, laying sideways on his bed facing your daughter, being wary of your bump.

Katsuki ran his right arm down arm a few times, hoping to sooth your cries. His hand ran down your back, reaching around the best he could to hold onto your stomach. He lifted his left arm to do the same, but that took a lot more effort. 

No matter the effort, he’d do all he could to hold you close to him.

You sighed, calm enough to sit up to look at your loves in matching bandages.

“You both are in so much trouble when we get home.”

“Awh Ma, c’mon!”

“Yeah what the hell woman.”

You laughed and they looked at your confused, glancing at each other before sharing mental thoughts, knowing they shouldn’t poke the bear.

“I’m sorry mom.” Akari sighed.

“Me too mom.” Katsuki replied sarcastically.

Well, poke the bear too much. Katsuki couldn’t help it sometimes, even during serious moments such as these.

“You better be, I never said you could get yourselves hurt, did I?” 

“No ma’am.” They responded in sync. 

You sat on his bed in a way that allowed you to look at both of them at the same time, and you felt tears well up one more. Reaching out to your daughter, you held her hand tight, using the other to rub circles on your husbands bicep.

“I love you both, I’m so happy you’re okay.”

“We love you too.”

[blankdblank]

Hobbit Soulmate Pt 40

“Time to celebrate with food,” your dad said easing the book in front of him shut glad he at least had the figures for a rough estimate on how much wood in each type you’d be wanting. “I’ll take these back down and get the meat ready for the burgers.”

“Oh I’ll have to get some stuff,”

“No hurry,” he said lifting them all as you eased back on your heeled wedges and collected your bag on the way out joining him on the trip down the stairs to share what you’d told him you’d like for flooring, the islands and shelves to settle those plans for the installation right away.

Once in the cool air again you turned for the market and at the ring from your phone you pulled it from your pocket seeing Liv’s name on the screen.

“Hey, thought you were still on your honeymoon.”

“Barbados was lovely. I’m so sorry you had to work.”

“That’s ok I’m glad you loved your destination wedding.”

“Well we just got back in yesterday morning, how have you been? You’re still in Canada right?”

“Well I’m in New  York this week dad got nominated for an MTV award so I’m going with him.”

“Oh that’s amazing! We’re going too! We can have a get together after, at least a dinner.”

“Ya, sounds great hear a good chunk of the guys and Peter will be there too for their noms.”

“So what have you been up to in the city? Wandering again?”

“Dad actually set up a tour of a brownstone for me, put down some money on it and got the keys.”

“That’s so incredible, I want to know everything!”

“Well it’s five stories with the basement level, eight bedrooms seven bath,”

“That is huge compared to mine, did you get a good deal? Mine was nearly a tear down had to gut the whole thing.”

“Well the old tenant trashed the place and the landlord had been doing some repairs replacing a bunch after my dad sort of reserved it for me by putting some of his money down. Took out some walls to make more living room, space for the kitchen and an actual dining room. And it needs new floors and cabinets but the plumbing and wiring and heat, ac and fireplaces have been fixed, water heater and I think he said they redid the roof too when they had to fix a beam up there. So it’s rough but it’s so pretty in my head. And it has the cutest guest bath on the main floor under the stairs and all these arches and beams through the house.”

“Aww, I love my guest bath too and the beams always add great character to help if you go the classic look. You have to show us all after the show. Give us the full tour.”

“Ok, should be fun Dad’s talking to the Landlord now to set the floor appointments. Is it weird that I want carpet, everywhere I go they always talk nonstop about their wood floors but I really want some carpet.”

“Not at all I love the carpet in my bedroom and on the second floor. Oh this is so much fun, we can swap stories when you get done with this show and I can help take you shopping if you like to decorate. So much fun.”

“Yes, might take a while though, Rich is glad I’m interested in making my own home here that we can share but I don’t want to make it too much mine, you know?”

“He’ll love anything you do with it as long as he’s got his space he can explode in as he likes.”

“Well there’s this kind of cute open study on the top floor by our bedroom I was gonna give him to have all his for his pacing or rehearsing or whatnot. And I can take the little strip of a room on the main floor behind the stairs for a sort of library reading nook.”

“I love it already and I haven’t even seen it. You got a good price on it?”

“1.5 mil, everything else on the block is three plus. It was more till it got trashed.”

“No judgment there I thought mine was a horror show. Especially the basement, right out of a horror flick. But the bones were so beautiful. I know it’s terrifying having your first grown up home I was your age roughly when I got mine, and trust me it is worth it.”

“Well it will be fun to show off and I can stash your wedding present there for when we get there.”

“Oh you didn’t have to get me anything.”

“Yes I did, couldn’t just leave the poor thing on the shelf when I saw it.”

“I can’t wait.” She heard the mingling of voices while you approached the door to the store and asked, “Are you in the subway?”

“No, heading to pick up some things for dinner. Dad said he wants burgers. Have the meat just need some sides.”

Her doorbell rang and you could hear her move to climb onto her couch to peer out the front window at the door to say as her hubby got the food from the delivery boy, “Perfect timing here’s our dinner too. I’ll let you hunt for food and see you tomorrow, Love you hun.”

“Love you too,” you said, with her hang up signaling you to close the phone to pocket it again.

A circle of a display of canned sauces drew your focus to the hatted man with camera hanging against his belly that moved from tailing you at the sight of towards Nicholas Cage on his way to scout for something down the grocery aisles. Looking away you continued on to pick out some barbecue sauce knowing you were out along with ketchup and some pickles you added to the basket you’d tucked in the crook of your arm. Buns were added as well and you were off to the noodles. A pasta salad would be simple to go with some potatoes and veggies you were off to get next over macaroni you didn’t want to make from scratch right now as the boxes were all gone. French fries were still locked in your freezer with the frozen meat patties so you were good there.

Aloofly again your eyes scanned over the display of corn looking less than top of the line to pick from and with bag in hand you lifted your first choice turning it over only to hear, “What are you doing here?”

The tone of harsh superiority scolding of an assumed inferior let you know just which idiot the familiar voice belonged to, Adrien Brody stood on your left in a focused stare down at you and adding the corn to the bag. You said, “I feel like this is a trick question.”

“You really have to come here to shop in Lower Manhattan?”

“Ya.” You said turning your head to the corn selecting another to twist on the bag you added to your basket to move onto the potatoes baffling the actor even more.

“Honestly there’s nowhere else you can shop? This is where I shop.”

While you grabbed a bag of potatoes you replied, “I should warn you there’s a strong policy against people urinating in public places this place enforces should you be trying to mark it like a tree.” Towards a teen worker being shouted at you walked with eyes narrowing at the man who felt he had the right to shout over nothing.

Adrien scoffed following after you at a distance. Then watched as the man turn clearly recognizing you, “When are you going to get some decent help here?! I’ve been trying to tell this little illegal here that I’m looking for the chocolate chili powdered mixed nuts in the blue Planters tin with cashews and walnuts, and clearly this concept is just beyond his grasp!”

Splotchy in what food based Filipino you knew around the brand name you translated for the teen what the guy wanted and the teen scoffed saying in English, “Why didn’t he just say that?” Turning to head to the wall where the display had been moved, not twenty feet from the now red faced man. “Shout about illegal, I’m from Boise.” He grabbed the top tray with a flat expression returned allowing the man to promptly grab his four tins and turn to the registers to flee while you shared an elbow bump with your former coworker that turned to put the tray back.

Continuing on you went to grab some cheese and sour cream with Adrien again at your side, “Do you now him?”

“I trained him,” You said glancing up at him, “Worked here for years, if anything you’ll have a hard time having me barred from your tree, Cupcake.”

“Not a cupcake.” He looked to his basket, “Maybe then you’d know where they’d be hiding the lemon juice.”

“Juice aisle,”

“Looked there,”

“Top shelf by the sparkling cider and the glass apple juice jars. Try tilting your head back, I know, foreign concept for you possibly from your altitude.”

In a disbelieving tone he said, “Fine, I’ll humor you, but if it isn’t there I win.”

“What do I get if I win?” You teased and he huffed turning to check your guess for the location. While the cheese was found and passing the aisle you caught his glare at the juice right where you said it’d be and smirked on your way up to the registers.

Glancing down the register aisles for who was working you picked the one you knew would have the least trouble with your produce and waited. Four people were in front of you while in Adrien’s approach to the line on your right with two people he smirked your way assuming he’d picked the faster path home until his face dropped at a voice asking from behind you, “Miss Pear?”

A smile eased across your lips in a turn that once you saw who was behind you, Nicholas Cage stood with smile spreading recognizing your eyes right away, “I thought it was you by the cheese. My old lady must have seen your movie nine times in theaters while I was off filming, pinned me down when I got back to watch it on tape, it is fantastic.”

“Thank you,” You said with grin creeping wider awkwardly.

“Almost didn’t realize you with your hair different, and she didn’t believe me when I said you used to work here. You have any other roles for the hair change?”

“Ya, filming in Canada, finishing it up next couple months after this week off. Tv show set a couple years out, have a mini series on BBC set to be out next year, then I’m going blonde for King Kong.”

“Really, I hadn’t heard that. I bet it’s going to be fantastic. After the Beast I can’t imagine you couldn’t wow in anything. I’ll keep my eyes open for your name, now if you’ll excuse me I have to hunt down someone to grab me a balloon.”

“Ooh, um, the red headed guy in the soup loves the balloons, least pops out of the guys here.”

“Soup aisle, thank you. See you round.” He said hurrying off to go hunt down the balloon guy to add those to his bouquet of flowers he had clearly planning something big.

Smiling to yourself you turned to see Adrien with his brow raised at you, “Oh you know that was cool. Your just pretending to hate me. I’d be happy for you if you were in my spot.”

He shook his head and stepped forward with his cart to what he assumed to be his sign he’d leave first only to watch the people in front of you get rung up quickly once the receipt roll was swapped out. A glance past him showed the woman on the next register clearly scouring her purse for more funds she didn’t have and sigh realizing she’d have to choose what to pull off the receipt to fit her cash in hand. Soundly her sleeping baby in the carrier inside the cart showed why the young woman was struggling. And once you accepted your large paper bag your cashier watched you fold the bills you palmed to make them wrinkled and passing him Adrien watched with lips parted still being rung up at your faked dip between her cart and the register to lift extending the bills. “You dropped this, Miss.”

A wave of relief washed over her face in her smiling turn to the cashier, who smirked to herself having recognized you and this trick you’d played more than once before even when it was the last of the funds you had to the name back when you worked together. “Thank you, so much. Must have slipped right out, darn broken zipper.” Out you went not lingering in the moment as the actor had assumed any person might, to make a show of themselves saving the day to gift funds to someone in need. Simply alone now save for his circling thoughts he waited to be rung up so he could head out to his flashy car and drive back to his penthouse apartment in an area with far more expensive shops that drive him here for a bargain.

You had beaten your Dad back and getting the fries started you began to cut the rinsed and peeled corn from the cob to heat up along with the noodles you put on to boil next. In a spicy chili of sorts your own take on pasta salad came to life and widely grinning while you set that aside to cool your dad came in breaking out the patties he thawed in a move to the fridge earlier to use your ridged skillet to cook them up.

Breaking the content silence you voiced a thought you didn’t know when to say, “I’m going to need a list of all the light bulbs and filters. And candles for when power goes out, with matches.”

Lowly he chuckled, “I will have that readied for you by the time you get back. Along with a list of some small things you might also need to get started out.”

Moving each cooked patty to a plate off to the side sharing how the job was settled for the following week to tear up the wood floors and by the time that was done the tiles and carpet would be delivered to be installed the following day. Until then the team in charge of the shelves would be out the day after you’d flown back with the wood you wanted he would ensure was right up to par with the designs you had drafted up.

This was his baby girl’s home and he couldn’t be prouder at how you’d earned the funds for it and had taken charge after a timid blink of a moment to get what you wanted set to come to life. He couldn’t wait for Richard to get back out here to help you furnish and paint this monster of a home and get to settling knowing just how he’d love to have a beginning here too. You shared similar tastes and even without his input he knew as long as you were here Richard would feel at home.

The apartment had been good to get used to one another better. But if he was to have grand babies there would need to be some space to allow them to be made and to grow. And if you were to be climbing five flights of stairs he wanted it to be inside your own home with ample places to curl up in between if you were too tired to get up to the top floor. Most of all he wanted this to be perfect to help bolster your courage that you could succeed, you were new and knowing how famous actors knew your name and liked your jobs you’d chosen he wanted that to be common and not an out of place thing. Beast of Bards had done that, you had splashed onto scene and now the world just had to catch up to how indescribable you are.

After the meal was eaten and cleared it was time to bed so you’d be rested for the awards the following afternoon.

.

‘Hello Neighbor’ was the tagline for the story playing on the news blasting the news of your tour of the brownstone beside Keanu’s apartment with a picture of your meeting. Emphasized estimates of the block average price were given you might be dropping after the huge success Bard had grown to with an added note that the film had flown off the shelves with several stores on a backlist to get more copies in at the demand.

The anchor stated plainly that you must have made a killing with your previous films and were set to make even more with Kong when it did come out with a brief mention of a ‘project’ you were working on out in Canada currently. Concluding that you were a star to be reckoned with and weren’t going anywhere close to having Beast be a one time fluke for your success on film.

Over your breakfast plate your fork hovered as you said, “All that coming from the show that passed me over to interview a monkey handler.” The statement earned a chortle from your dad already having been smiling at their raving review on you.

“What else is on your mind? I can tell you’re deflecting.”

In a glance over at him you asked, “What do you think about a pirate ship chandelier for a nursery?” That had his grin easing out, “Mom made Peter Pan sketches you hung for mine, we haven’t talked babies seriously, but we have room, and I think the room by the back left corner on the third floor would be a good one.”

“I think that’s a great idea. Do you want me to talk to Rich about babies?”

“It’s not something that we plan on soon or right away, so maybe get the chandelier and just, sort of leave it open for when we need it. We don’t need to go buying a crib he just proposed I don’t want to-,”

“You are not going to scare him away. There is nowhere far enough he could hide from me if he tried. He wants a family told me so, it’s not an easy talk, your mom and I never had a talk, just sort of woke to her passing out on her way to get some grapefruit. You were a remarkable surprise and it was instant nursery planning and no complaints when I came back with armfuls of soft plushy Peter Pan decorations, nice and neutral. I think maybe you could do a mural or two across the wall and he might take the hint, sort of a future possibility room, some cubbies and built ins the mural and chandelier, maybe a rocking chair or loveseat.”

“Thank you.”

“You are so very welcome, babies always come to mind when houses come up.”

“I do want them to know the ranch too.”

“They will, and England, give them a nice round view of the world. Have about five years to think on which country they’ll go to school in, that’ll be a big one. But take your time, maybe it’ll be a job deciding it all.”

“Should we get barn door gates for the stairs like at the ranch?”

“We can, be prepared, even if to just keep guests out. I’ll be glad to handle that for you.”

“I would say glass ones but I can only think of things going badly with that.”

“Oh yes, not safe, and metal ones would only encourage hands to go through only welcoming injuries or attempted break outs.” He said with locked smile glad to have a plan started for the future grandbabies and their intended floor.

“I also have to figure out where the furniture from Canada is going, mine is kinda clear not much to move.” Glancing between him and your plate you asked, “How long do you think it’d take to fix it up?”

His smile came out again, “It is mostly cosmetic once we get the floors handled, island installed, counters replaced and shelving and cabinets in again. We could move in as soon as we pick the appliances if you like. L said you could still keep the apartment as long as you wanted till you felt ready same as Lee, who I know would be glad to have a home out here especially after his surgery scare.”

“I can always ask, his Agent’s trying to get him to the West Coast though for roles.”

“Boy can fly,” making you smirk, “Lord knows you do enough. Least this way he’ll have a room to come back to when he isn’t drug off home to Oklahoma. He’s not vanishing either under my watch he’ll come back if he does try to head off.”

You nodded and said, “Well either way won’t be long till I guess I’ll be back and trying to figure out how to share the place with him. I don’t know how it seems like sometimes I’m so ahead of the game.”

He smiled reaching over to pat your free hand resting on the table, “You take after me, Pumpkin. He grew up traveling while you grew up working the land and grinding hard to the ground for what you want. You have confidence in your ethic he’ll master over time. I felt the same over my younger brothers when they reached 18 and weren’t ready to jump to dad mode like I had, people vary but the influence of those around us help to build us up. We’ll get him there, he’s still young and learning. Plus you can’t forget with grandparents like yours you had a huge head start on working with producers, instructors and near to unreachable expectations. I am so proud of you for that, and I am glad I could have managed to grant you a childhood too before your battle of wills kicked in.”

“I wish you could have had one.”

Deepening his grin, “I did with you. Working with you is, profound. Honestly, I was a bit confused why you wanted to perform, I never doubted you or thought yourself out of bounds talent wise, but just the drive, but working with you I saw it. We taught you to read and opened doors to so many worlds and now you share stories with people bringing them to life, it’s infectious. There’s a bit of a time machine effect where you get to go back in time almost. And somehow I managed to get an award for being big and menacing, never thought I’d get that.”

“You have to tell me though, how jealous are the uncles?” That had him laugh out loud.

“Impossibly. The kids love the award shows and will brag forever that we’re gonna be there for them and their friends to watch.”

“Well shouldn’t be long now for them, takes a bit to get there.”

“Nope, and I can break out my suit to match your fancy dress.”

.

Again in your bathroom with the mirror you eyed the pale blue silk gown with golden panels on your hips feeding from decorative seams to accent your figure on the chunky strapped design smoothing your hands down the sides smoothing a wrinkle out of it. Without the fur wrap the last touch was your shoes, the tall black shoes Jen had helped you to buy with several straps from ankle to the start of your toes, one at a time in your lean against the counter they were put on adding a good help of inches lessening the pool of silk around your feet. Out you went to find your dad waiting with tie fixed into place smiling in his look over the skirt of your dress gauging how likely you might be to trip as he always did. At the call from your arrived driver downstairs a black clutch was grabbed and down you went.

All through the drive you held onto his arm resting over your legs in his try to calm him down by chatting. The carpet however managed that a tad better as your friends from Hugh Jackman to both Jens, Ben Affleck, Colin Farrell, but most especially your friends from the trilogy who all took their turns hugging the both of you and adding you both to more group shots like those you took with your other friends on the way inside. Briefly to his shock Adrien spotted you and your massive shadow casting father through the entrance pictures. Once you went in you found yourselves far from him, tucked on the end of the aisle in the square of seats for the trilogy stars. All chatting until the auditorium was full and the show began.

Breakthrough Female came first with Hugh Jackman and Famke Janssen coming out to present it. For Daredevil Jennifer Garner won and you clapped along with the crowd.

Queen Latifah and Adrien Brody came out next and to the sight of the same guy who had been bothering you, softly you sighed through the raucous greeting that died down as the names for Best Kiss nominations were given. Spider-Man’s Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst at their naming came up to collect their golden popcorn bucket statue while your friends in Daredevil Ben and Jen G’s relaxed at not having to go up to stay with their partners they’d rather cuddle up to and steal quick pecks on cheeks from. Avoiding having to fumble who makes the speech or what to say about their on stage kiss on the spot.

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence were next out for presenting Best Comedic Performance, that Mike Myers accepted for Austin Powers in Goldmember.

Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett called Kirsten Dunst up again for another win for Spider-Man for the Breakthrough Female Award.

Samuel L. Jackson and Colin Farrell were up next to name the winner of Best Fight. And with the crowd you cheered for your not present friend, Christopher Lee who won with Yoda from his role in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones. A representative came out from the Star Wars film who gave a quick thanks and went back to his seat for a quick shift to the next award.

Beyoncé and Johnny Knoxville next named Breakthrough Male, accepted by Eminem for 8 Mile.

Mark Wahlberg and Mýa came out next to introduce Pink for her performance of Feel Good Time. While she performed your dad leaned over to chat quietly with you at his nerves amping up again after hearing from Jen in her trip backstage that the award was up after this performance.

Ashton Kutcher and P. Diddy after the darkened pause of the stage approached the mic stand to name those nominated for Best Villain. Again Mike Myers was up with Colin Farrell, Daniel Day-Lewis, Willem Dafoe and your dad in a good mix from comedic to sinister Villains.

“And the winner is,” the pair together spoke while P. Diddy opened the envelope to say while Ashton’s fingers shifted around the popcorn statue. “Joe Pear!” Smiling widely you giggled and hugged your dad’s arm pulling him from his moment of shock and you saw the camera men step back in the aisle angling the camera to get his rising body to stay in the frame. His seat on the aisle kept you from having to tuck your legs out of his way and clapping and giggling to Viggo’s comment leaning in from your right you watched him stroll up onto the stage where both the men straightened up and peered up at the stunningly tall man over a head taller than the both of them.

In accepting the award your dad moved closer to the mic hunching over the podium to be closer to the mic stand. “Um, thank you for this award. I never really saw myself acting, in the audience yes, but starting over in films after a long time apart I get to work with my little girl, and it’s the most phenomenal job I could have asked for, so it means a lot to have had so many people who enjoy a film we worked so hard on. This is going up on the wall back home next to her awards while growing up.”

To the applause when he straightened up he glanced at the pair of men who hinted he had to go through the back of the stage causing him to glance your way. A silent signal that had you giggle and gather your skirt to sneak to your feet and slip into the aisle to stroll to the stage. That had the duo around your smiling dad smirk watching your smiling path to his side with eyes shining in the lights along with the giggling smile matching his widening one that even in your lightened hair you still his mini twin. His hand extended and at his side you moved folding yours in it to show him through the process of the mysterious back as well as you could guess at not being back there yourself either.

For those not among the cheering crowd grew quieter to the signal of the switch of award presenters only to be joined by the rest seeing who it was, the main focus was the vast difference of height accentuated by your 5 ft 2 in self over a foot and seven inches shorter than him even with six inch heels.

Best Trans-Atlantic Performance was next with David and Victoria Beckham pitting Orlando and Colin against one another while your dad handed over the award being told that his engraved statue would be delivered to the ranch address he gave them. A few questions were asked backstage lasting long enough for Colin, who won, to join you both there.

Soon to be joined by Viggo and Orlando who accepted the award on Peter’s behalf for the Best Action Sequence presented by Paul Walker and Tyrese Gibson for the Battle of Helms Deep scene in The Two Towers.

Sharon Osbourne next introduced 50 Cent performing "In Da Club" / "Wanksta". Both of which providing cover for your slip back out to your seats.

Jason Biggs and Alyson Hannigan presented Best On-Screen Team. Won by Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, and Andy Serkis. That pulled them from their seats for their own interviews backstage while you nestled against your dad’s arm at his pleased mood from his and your friends’ wins. Waiting for the day his award would be mailed off, beyond eager to hear that it had arrived at the ranch.

Kate Hudson and Luke Wilson presented Best Virtual Performance that beating out Scooby Doo, Kangaroo Jack, Dobby and Yoda Andy came back to the stage at Gollum’s win.

Amanda Bynes and Hilary Duff introduced t.A.T.u. who performed "All the Things She Said" / "Not Gonna Get Us"

Demi Moore presented Best Male Performance, that in beating out Viggo, Eminem was back out again on stage for 8 Mile.

With a grin your new neighbor Keanu was out to present Best Movie with the Two Towers, Barbershop, 8 Mile, Beast of Bards and Spider-Man up for it. Two Towers was named and Viggo helped you back up to your feet for your group to head up together so that you could all sneak out at once.

Back in the middle of actors on your way through the crowded back halls to a side door where the limo were waiting Ian claimed hold of your hand luring a curious smile across your lips catching his eye. Low and close to you he asked in a murmur, “I might have been mistaken, however, was it true, I heard that you had come out as queer?”

“I, how did you hear that?”

Smirking at you he replied shifting to avoid another celeb passing by him, “As you always say my dear, everyone has ears.”

Softly you exhaled and avoided a statuesque model passing between you and the wall mid gulp of her martini from one of the mini parties in the back room she was exiting then came back to his side saying, “Well. I always knew I was something, but one of the Queens who does my hair helped me realize I’m ace.”

Parting his lips, “Truly one of a kind you are in every angle of you.”

That had you giggle and say, “Well I always used to just call myself Tigger, from Winnie the Pooh.” That had his brow tick up till you said, “Cuz I’m the only one.”

Lowly he chuckled and replied, “You are not. And I must say welcome. There are very few even rumored ace performers in the world. You are in fine company even I have heard through a friend that I’m Marilyn Monroe’s journals there is evidence she was possibly ace herself. So very fine company indeed. You are not the only one.”

You smirked again, “Then we all must be blindfolded in this forest because we are exceptionally hard to find and silent as ever in our own confusion.”

That had him chuckle through your soft giggle causing Viggo in front of you to steal a grinning glance back at you two ensuring you hadn’t been lost. “True it is a difficult thing to voice I can imagine. Does your father and Richard know?”

“Oh ya. I mean they knew before I had the name. Dad used to take it as I was a June Cleaver with only eyes for my hubby I was head over heels for. Nothing to be cross about. Rich’s brother Chris is a bit jealous he loved the nickname ace when they were kids. Always wanted to be his name when they played cowboys or race car drivers,” widening the grin across Ian’s face. “I tried explaining it to Lee before but like most teenagers I tried to express the meaning behind how I saw people, I guess, intimately, it all sort of got muddled. So he’s happy for me, still doesn’t get it really but I suppose it’d be hard for him to. Always saw it like the Titanic, no one really got how that marvelous beauty could drown. But everyone on the Titanic is saying you didn’t see that fucking iceberg come out of nowhere.”

“Well put.” He chuckled out and let you go first through the door Viggo was holding for you leading outside. “Very well put.”

Pt 41

[freakygirlie]

Walker- 1x03 ~spoilers~

OHMYFUCKING GOD THIS EPISODE WAS AMAZING! LIKE MY FAVORITE! This was the first Walker episode I watched live while! Jared was live tweeting it! It was so much fun and I enjoyed it a lot even if it did air at 5am for me dkjdshdj This episode was awesome for so many reasons like the new character dynamics were spot! on! and they improved so wonderfully upon the old ones! They’ve also gotten really better at balancing the work and family part of Walker and it just flowed together really well. I’ve watched the episode 3 times already! Walker just keeps getting better and better!

~spoilers~ last warning!!!

Opening with another Emily and Walker scene *screams*. Walker trying to learn how to drive was the cutest thing ever like and Emily teaching him! It was frankly adorable and the bobblehead was so cute sjjdfjhd. ALSO I LOVE THE CAR IT’S SO BEAUTIFUL I MISS HE IMPALA BUT LIKE STILL I LVOE THE FORD MUSTANG AND OMG THEY NAMED IT STELLA??? AND THAT’S HOW STELLA WALKER GOT HER NAME THAT IS TOO PRECIOUS.

CORDIREZ! CORDIREZ! CORDIREZ! Y’all i love them i would die for them. Micki looks awesome in a ponytail btw and the way they were just bantering and being all cute! SERETONIN!

HOLY MCFUCKING SHIT! STRIPPERS??? MALE. STRIPPERS? JARED PADALECKI I-

THEY WERE ACTUAL STRIPPERS WITH GLITTER AND COWBOY HATS AND THEY WERE SO FUCKING HOT OHMYGOD HELP. I love Hoyt pls. AND AHAHAHAH ‘’IS THERE ANYONE IN THE BACK?’’ “NO WHY YOU INTERESTED?’’ NO. WALKER ALMOST LOOKED OFFENDED PLEASE.

HSDHJS HE STOLE THE TRUCK NOT COOL MAN! ‘’my bobblehead was in there!’’ WALKER PLS HER TRUCK JUST GOT STOLEN. i laughed and facepalmed simultaneously.

Cordell standing up for Micki in the briefing room when everyone laughed at her i’m melting i am soft. Also Walker......did u just recognize hoyt by his torso.....k cool.

HA THEIR FIRST MEETING WITH HOYT TAKING HIM DOWN AND CORDELL THROWING HIM ON THE GROUND PLEASE. BEST. I love Hoyt and Cordell’s dynamic a LOT ok and just- they had something idc idc. ‘’Not cool C- dubs’’ i choked. They are such awesome friends, I really want to see more of Hoyt Rawlins!

Hoyt and Abelaine’s relationship is so CUTE! I LOVE THEM. Hoyt is obviously like a son to her and she sees something in him and I just! love that! 

I loved the scene between Micki and Bonham. They got along really really well. HOW DOES THIS ENTIRE CAST JUST HAVE SO MUCH CHEMISTRY WITH EACH OTHER IT’S INSANE. Like Matt and Jared? Keegan and Jared? Lindsey and Jared? Coby and Jared? OK HOW DOES JARED HAVE SO MUCH CHEMISTRY WITH EVERYONE HE MEETS. ESPECIALLY MEN. *cough* Jensen *cough*

THE HOLY TRINITY! GERI, JARED AND HOYT! I LOVED LOVED LOVED IT PLS LEMME SEE MORE OF THEM PLEASE. 

Okay- Micki coming and taking Hoyt down (she is such a badass) was the right thing to do. Walker was letting *a face from the past* cloud his judgement and thinking, and blurring the line between right and wrong. It, while not easy, is the best thing for Hoyt and he’ll be able to lead a better life from here. Micki is smart, down-to-earth and I JUST LOVE HER SO MUCH.

TEAM SASSYBOOTS I LOVE THAT SO MUCH MY NEW FAV SHIP HAS AN AWESOME TEAM NAME. ‘IF HE DREW BALLS ON THAT I SWEAR’ HAHHAHA WALKER ILY. Yes Jared, it’s one of my favorite lines too.

Hoyt and Mama Walker’s phone call was so touching djkdkjhf. Hoyt saved Walker’s life???? BACKSTORY PLEASE. I once again demand for more Hoyt, I really want to see more of them. 

AYE SHOOTING SHOWDOWN! RANGERS AND ARMED WEAPONS DEALERS! BOOM! I loved that. They upped the badassery in here and it was just! perfect! 

‘‘Am I just that good’‘ Yes hoyt u are. Ngl for a minute I thought he’d get away but SCORE 1 FOR TEAM SASSYBOOTS! JDSHDJDHFD. Also I’m glad Hoyt didn’t appear to bear any ill-will towards Walker for doing what he did. I think deep down he knew, that this was best for him too and I’m really happy for that. I want to see this duo again so much.

OKAY ALL OF THE AUGUST AND STELLA SCENES IN THIS EPISODE! Y E S! HE IS SUCH A CUTIE THEY BOTH ARE! And damn, possession of marijuana Stella? I’m glad she’s making up for it now! Liam supporting her for her upcoming court trial was the cutest.

DRUNK!AUGUST DANCING. YES. I LOVE HIM. HE IS MY CHILD I WANT TO ADOPT HIM PLEASE.  wHY IS AUGUST’S POSSIBLE LOVE INTEREST’S NAME RUBY??? LIKE FATHER LIKE SON EH AUGUST.

The Briam scene when coming out the bakery! SJHDJDKS PLEASE THEY ARE SO CUTE! ‘’August drunk? I’m not missing this for the world’’ Same Bret. Same. Also Bret’s last name when?

Their little dance and sing along in the car was so cute. They’re such an amazing family. I love Liam so much no one hurt him.

Walker going in as her dad AWWWW. I love the fact that he is genuinely trying really hard to be there for his kids now. Excited to see more of the kids and him!

THAT LAST SCENE HAD ME IN TEARS PLEASE. OK FIRST WALKER DON’T HIT UR SON WITH A PILLOW HE HAS A HANGOVER. AND THAT!

-You alright? -Yep -Yeah -Yep -Yep -Yep. 

PLEASE I DIED. BEST SCENE EVER. 

Walker teaching Stella how to drive Stella! LMAO OK SORRY ILL STOP.

It was beautiful. MAKING AUGUST RUN BEHIND THOUGH PLEASE I LAUGHED A LUNG UP AT 6 AM PRAYING MY MOM DIDNT WAKE UP AND KILL ME. I loved that ending to the episode! I missed Trey in this one but this episode has been my favorite! Loved everything about it!!!

Speculation/Thoughts for Episode 4:- IT’S A CORDIREZ EPISODE IT’S A CORDIREZ EPISODE IT IS A CORDIREZ EPISODE LADIES AND GENTLEMEN A CORDIREZ CENTRIC EPISODE IM NOT GONNA SURVIVE THIS. ‘off the books is my middle name’ Walker i love you. They’re obviously getting involved in something important to Micki and something that’s...probably unusual? but not illegal bc neither Micki or Walker would do that. I’m excited to see what it is and how it all plays out!

Can’t wait for episode 4! AND UGH IT’S GOING ON HIATUS AFTER EPISODE 5????? FUCK YOU UNIVERSE I NEED MY WEEKLY DOES OF WALKER HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO DO THIS.

[perseusjackson-jasongrace]

Empires on the Horizon IV

Jason is a CEO: Part IV

Here’s my masterlist for the next part and my other stuff 

new beginnings

look fragile

like glass

but when grabbed

sparkle

like diamonds

-badpoetry

“Good morning Mr Grace,” Grover Underwood smiled from his usual spot behind the coffee machine.

“Morning, how are you?”

“Much happier for seeing you less like someone kicked your puppy,” He gave Jason a knowing look.

“How?”

“There are some things the brain cannot hide, matters of the heart are often one of them.”

He didn’t really have any reply to that, so he gave the man an awkward smile and shrugged.

“Your usual then?”

“Yes please, and an iced coffee for Hazel.”

“Ah where is the darling this morning?”

“She’s coming into the office later, something about needing to go home first? She must have stayed at a friend’s place.”

Grover raised a dark brow, “Mhmm and where is your driver this morning? I noticed you drove yourself in today.”

“Uh I think Frank took the day off,” He frowned trying to piece the conversation he’d had with his friend in his sleep-deprived brain.

“Oh interesting,” Grover’s chocolate brown eyes twinkled in amusement, but before Jason could question him a warm cup was being shoved into his hand and he was being ushered away to wait for the iced coffee.

Collapsing into a chair, he pushed his glasses up his nose and wrapped his scarf tighter around his neck. Winter was beautiful but gods it was cold. He glanced around the café taking in the familiar forest green walls and dark wood floors. There was no sun streaming through the windows today so the gold accents on the tables were dulled and dark, like hidden bronze. He traced his fingers around the edge of his cup, losing himself in the motion, in the feeling of heat on his cold fingers, in the small gusts of wind against his cheeks as the door opened and closed, in the noise of a bustling store, in the–

“Hello Jason,”

“Luke,” He took a deep breath, “Fuck off.”

“Aw don’t be like that,” He sniggered.

“Please Luke, I don’t have the energy for this right now,” Exhaustion was a thousand-ton weight on his bones.

“That’s your problem Jason you never wanted to take things head on. It was always let’s wait for this, let’s get their opinion first, let’s just give it a couple weeks. You could have had the world begging at your fingertips if you just went for what you wanted.”

“Are you done?”

Luke’s responding laugh was malicious, “You are so-“

“Leave.” His voice was stone.

His ex-boyfriend scoffed, “Pathetic.”

Jason watched as the face he had been so in love with sneered at him, the scar running down a pale cheek twisting into malice. His soul ached for what could have been, it burned for what now was. It always surprised him how drained he felt after every interaction with Luke- like crashing down from a potent high. Being with Luke was a high, was euphoria and hope and sin. What the fuck went wrong? 

His phone buzzed in his pocket.

“Talk to me,”

“Why do you insist on answering the phone like you’re some sort of mafia boss?” His sister grumbled.

“Hello to you too Thalia,”

“I just wanted to let you know that I’ve set you up on a date tonight. Six-thirty at Sun and Songs.”

He groaned, “No. I am not in the mood.”

“Jason Grace,” She started; he could feel a rant coming on, “You cannot stop living your life because you have a wanker of an ex-boyfriend. You have been in a slump since Luke and it is affecting you in ways you’re too scared to admit.”

“It is not affecting me,” He was tired of having this fight, “I literally dated Piper for like three months.”

“Mhm and were you happy? Did you put all you could into the relationship?” She didn’t wait for his response, “No, you may have been a little happier, but you weren’t you. So you will go on this date tonight and in five years when we’re planning your wedding you better be thanking me in your speech.”

“Gods Thals,” He snorted, “We haven’t even gone on the date yet and you’re already planning a wedding?”

“Wait does that mean you agree to it?” She squealed through the phone.

“Yes loser,” He held in a laugh, “I’ll go on the date. But if it doesn’t work out you drop all of this. No more setting me up, no more interfering.”

“Yes sir. Now, how work’s going?”

“Besides the fact that Project Hestia is on hold because of this stupid contract everything is good.”

“Isn’t your fancy lawyer lady sorting it out?” She muttered.

“Reyna is a great lawyer and you know it.”

“Yea but she’s also my ex-girlfriend so I get to be a little resentful.”

He snorted at that, “Of course, and how are you?”

“I’m good. The Conservatory is still standing so I can’t be doing too many things wrong.”

“Didn’t you guys get cheetah cubs this weekend?”

“Oh Jase!” His sister cried, “They are just the absolute cutest things. Did you know cheetahs are so shy that some conservationists and wild-life biologists recommend giving them emotional support puppies?”

“So what you guys got puppies and cubs?”

“We haven’t got the puppies yet; they’re only arriving this week.”

“Well send me pictures when they’re together, maybe I’ll have them framed and hung around the office as a morale booster.”

She laughed, the sound crackly through the speaker, “Will do little bro. Listen I have to go but call me tomorrow to tell me about the date.”

“Wait!” He yelled, ignoring the weird looks from the café patrons as he walked out, “What’s her name?”

“Zoe.”

***

Jason was nervous. That was the only explanation for his shaky hands and the zoo of creatures in his stomach. He had gotten to Suns and Songs fifteen minutes early with a lavender and daisy bouquet in hand. The restaurant his sister had reserved was nothing short of incredible. Dark maroon draped over each table, and opulent candelabras sat in the center, lit only if the table was occupied. Glass and crystal chandeliers swung slowly from the high wooden beams, catching on the light and making a kaleidoscope of the room. Even the way the air smelt was decadent here. Like wood smoke and perfume, some hint of chocolate, maybe. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he wanted to bottle the scent and bathe himself in it. Trying not to be suspicious he took another deep breath in; it calmed his nerves if nothing else.

“Mr Grace?” someone put a soft hand on his shoulder, “Your guest,”

He thanked the waitress, getting up to greet his date and pull out her chair. He tried to muffle his gasp when he finally turned to her. She was stunning. Midnight skin contrasting elegantly with the pastel yellow dress she wore. Braids intertwined with glittering strands; it cast a pale silver halo around her head. Small hoop earrings glinted as she moved, and the bracelets at her wrist clinked gently when they shook hands.

“Hi, Jason Grace,” He smiled.

“Zoe Nightshade.” She flashed beautiful white teeth.

He handed her the flowers, “You look unbelievable.” He truly was in awe of her.

“Thank you,” Her smile was soft, but her voice was crisp and direct, “And these are gorgeous.”

“Would you like to order drinks?”

They scanned the menu quickly; Zoe ordered a cocktail he hadn’t heard of and he ordered the first thing he saw that didn’t have tequila in it.

“So,” He asked, and then cringed at himself internally. Starting any conversation with so was bound to make it awkward.

He cleared his throat, “How do you know Thalia?”

“We work together at the Conservatory. I moved here a couple months ago because I got transferred from the wildlife center in Germany.”

Jason didn’t know what but something about her voice made his insides melt. She said everything so undiplomatically– like if it wasn’t a fact it wasn’t worth uttering.

“Oh that’s cool. What do you do?”

“I’m a veterinarian. You?”

“Well I was a structural engineer but somehow over the years I got roped into being a town and regional planner.”

She frowned, tilting her head assessingly, “You did not finish your engineering degree?”

“Oh no I finished and got my masters in structural but then I started my company and I realised I needed other qualifications to run it the way I wanted to so I had to go back and get a degree in urban and regional planning. By the end I felt like I had been studying since the dawn of time.”

She laughed at that, and a look of surprise crossed her face, as if it was as unexpected to her as it was to him. “I know how you feel. I love animals and I’m passionate about my work but when I was done studying, I vowed never to go back. Studying for seven years after school and then trying to do it all over again feels like a one-way ticket to the end of the road.”

He mirrored her smile, “How did you get into veterinary sciences anyway?”

“My father was always busy, and my sisters were… interested in anything that could make them more beautiful, or richer. So I was pretty alone for most of my childhood. At some stage I convinced my father to get me a dog, Ladon. We were inseparable. But he got hurt when this man,“ She said it with such disgust he almost flinched. “This man hurt him. Kicked Little Ladon out the way when he was just trying to say hello. We had to take him to the vet, and I remember them being so sweet and kind to my dog and I knew I wanted to be exactly like that when I grew up.”

“Any chance you know where this man is so we can kick his ass?”

She laughed, raspy and bursting, “Don’t worry little eleven-year-old me kicked Mr Alcides as hard as I could in the shins.”

“Good,” he nodded with conviction, “He deserved more but you found your passion so there is some balance.”

She hid her grin behind a sip from her drink.

“Sir, ma’am,” Their waitress stepped to their table, “Would you like to order?”

Hours later, cheeks flushed from the liquor, laughing over Thalia’s antics and their shared need for structure, they finally decided to call the dinner to an end.

“The focaccia was to die for,” Zoe groaned, patting her stomach.

“Honestly, I may have to marry the pasta.” He sighed contentedly.

She giggled, and he knew it was a rare thing for her because her face caught that surprised look again.

“Want to grab dessert?”

“Oh gods no,” She shook her head in alarm, and then frowned as the realisation of what that meant washed through her.

“I had a really great time tonight,” He started softly.

“Do you want to walk to the park? We can stop and have gelato?” Her dark eyes were full of nervous hope.

He blinked at her, a little shocked she wanted to continue the date, “I thought you didn’t want dessert?” He teased.

“Maybe the walk will burn off some of these calories and i’ll have space for a little ice-cream.” She scunched her nose.

He knew the gelato was just an excuse, so with a grin that lit up his whole face he grabbed her hand and nodded, “Let’s do it Miss Nightshade.”

Her face glowed with relief and enthusiasm as they tucked their chairs in and exited the restaurant.

“Tell me about your family. How come you weren’t interested in the rich side of life like your sisters?”

“I guess being the youngest kind of made it all seem pointless. I had seen what happened when their vanity became malicious and I didn’t ever want to turn into something I couldn’t recognise. I went to stay with my Aunt Diana through high school. She owned a bird sanctuary. That’s where I interned in my college years.”

“Wow,” He looked down to her, awe evident in his face, “And it didn’t bother you to be so far away from your father and sisters?”

“Honestly, I’m not even sure they noticed when I left.” She shrugged, “It was a long time ago. I really only see them for family functions now.”

“And your aunt?”

“She still has the bird sanctuary, but she mostly works in the background now. My cousins, Bianca and Phoebe, run it full time.”

“Do you miss it? Were you guys close?”

“Much closer than my sisters and I. I do miss them, but I definitely can’t say I miss the sanctuary. Some of those birds were evil.”

Just then a loud squawk came from above them. She scowled at the sky, “I’m talking about you Auretta.”

He tried to hold in a laugh but Zoe stuck out her tongue childishly and they both bent over in laughter.

“Maybe we shouldn’t hurl insults while we’re out in the open.” He managed to gasp.

“Good thing the gelato shop is right there.” She grinned, grabbing his hand and sprinting towards the small, illuminated store at the end of the cobbled street. Her dress shimmered, moved like rays of light. She looked like a star.

“Come on,” She yelled, tugging at his hand harder.

‘Alright, alright,” He snapped out of his admiration and let her lead him into the shop.

“Hi, what can I get you?”

“Want to share?”

“Sure, you choose,” He waved a hand towards the abundance of flavours behind the glass.

“Please can we have one scoop of chocolate, one scoop of vanilla and,” Her brow furrowed as she scanned the tags, “And one scoop of cookie crumble.”

“Why did I think you were a sorbet girl?”

“Sorbet in the summer, anything else for the rest of the year.” She said matter of factly.

He nodded solemnly, “Yes makes sense.”

She swatted his arm, grabbing the cone from the lady with a thank you, “Gods I feel like a teenager again,”

“I know what you mean,” Her excitement was infectious.

“I have to ask,” She swallowed a chunk of cookie crumble, “What on earth were you thinking when you decided to eat a stapler?”

Jason groaned, “Why did Thalia tell you that? She swore she wouldn’t tell anyone and if asked I would say I fell off my bike or something.”

Zoe giggled, “Come on, spill.”

“Okay, first of all I was two,” He sighed, embarrassment heating his cheeks, “And it was shiny, and it made a cool clicking noise, and I wanted to know what it tasted like.”

“I can just picture a little Jason crawling onto the kitchen counter and trying to bite down on a stapler.” She teased.

“Yes well now I have this scar,” He pointed to his upper lip, rolling his eyes.

“Battle scars. Very worthy.”

He shoved at her shoulder lightly and they dissolved into laughter once more.

It was almost midnight by the time he had dropped her off at home and stepped into his apartment. He looked at his phone to see a couple work messages, and something from Hazel– things he could reply to in the morning he decided, tugging off his tie and discarding his clothes as he walked to his room. He was asleep before his head hit the pillow, his phone still glaringly bright and open on the chat with his sister.

You were right. We’re going on a second date.

-----------------------------------------------------

Grover is like some other worldy deity that spews life lessons every time they meet and i am so here for it! Anyway what y’all saying??? How are we feeling?

Tags (if you want to be added to/ taken off the tag list just let me know, all my channels of communication are open):

@lesbian-peanuts

@leydiangelo

@queen-of-demons-and-hell

@msdrpreist

@sparkythunderstorm

@nishlicious-01

@lucyisblue​

[mrcleanheichou]

Forever and ever chapter 2

When two young people fall in love others often call it puppy love. A love so intense that ultimately fizzles out very quickly. No one believes someone so young could fall for someone so fast and have it be genuine until they see it with their own eyes.

Pairing Cowboy!Jungkook x reader

Genre fluff, angst, eventual smut

Word count 2K

Warnings Mention of a boner

Author’s note soooo long time no see lol I am such a bad fic writer, I literally start a WIP and don’t touch it for months. I have 4 WIPs that I bounce between when i get writer’s block. Slowly but surely I want to start writing consistently so I can get better. So I offer to you my Bangtan cowboy yeehaw fic. I really want to read cowboy fics but there’s barely anything so I decided to be the change I wanted to see in the world and wrote my own.

Here’s chapter 1

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1 week later Jungkook had just finished working on sections of the barbed wire fence with Jimin when he saw his hyung Jin getting the wagon ready. As soon as he put the roll of extra wire and his gloves back in the shed he jogged over to Jin. “Hyung! Are you going to town?”, He asked a little too loud making the horse Jin was hooking up to panic a little. “Hey, hey, hey, you’re ok.”, Jin says trying to get the horse back under control. Once he gets the nervous animal to calm down he looks toward the sweaty young man. “Yeah, I have to go to the market. Do you want to go?”Jungkook said yes a little to excitedly. “Ok, but go wash up. You stink.”

Jungkook hurried to the room he shares with Taehyung in the large ranch house where all seven of the men who work on Bangtan cattle ranch live. 

**~~~~~~~~~** The whole operation is split four ways between the four older men. Namjoon and Yoongi run the majority of everything between Yoongi finding buyers for their livestock and Namjoon negotiating deals. They are both very knowledgeable cattlemen despite being in their mid twenties. They do not let other cattlemen try to dupe them because they think they’re young and gullible. Multiple times meetings have almost come to blows since the older men don’t like being shown up by the quick witted duo. The other partners are Jin and Hoseok. Jin takes care of feeding six very hungry mouths. He is a very good cook and he is also very skilled at fixing leather. He makes money on the side by fixing bridles and saddles for other people. Then there’s Hoseok who used to be a bronco rider on the rodeo circuit and now he uses his skills to break in young horses. Jimin and Taehyung were a couple of trouble makers that would do little odd jobs and play cards to get money to drink and entertain the women at multiple saloons almost every night. They ended up at the same poker table as Yoongi one night 6 years ago. They got to talking and he told them about needing workers on his ranch. Jimin automatically said no. He was very against that idea since he didn’t want to do actual hard labor in the sun. Taehyung was more open to the idea of a consistent pay check. Yoongi made them a bet. They’d play three rounds of ‘7-card-stud’ and if Yoongi beat them at least two times then he’d stop asking. But if he did beat them then they both had to come work for him. They took the bet and obviously Yoongi won. Although Jimin still to this day swears Yoongi cheated. Jungkook’s story is a little different. He made the 50 mile journey to Coyote Creek from his family’s farm after one of many fights he had with his father. When his mother died his father turned to alcohol to drown the pain. He became a monster of a man and resented the fact that Jungkook looked like his mother. The only time an argument turned physical was right before Jungkook ran away. He accidentally burnt the dinner he was making. His father immediately got up and grabbed Jungkook by the shirt and yelled in his face about how useless he was. He told him he regreted ever having him and that he has never loved him. When Jungkook started crying his father slapped him across the face. That was the final straw for Jungkook. As soon as his father was too drunk to even know where he was, he started packing some of his things and stole some money his father’s stash in his closet. He raided the storehouse for as much essential foods that he could reasonably transport and packed it all up onto one of their horses. Taking one final look back at his childhood home, Jungkook finally stopped fighting his tears. He sobbed, allowing himself to mourn the loss of both his mother and father. Once he calmed down he got on his horse and left his old life behind. At the age of 14 Jungkook set off for a better life. It took him  two days to reach the town where he promptly started asking around for a job. Unfortunately no one was interested in hiring him, even for simple jobs. After six days he was out of cash, hungry and desperate. He went to the horse auctions and was going to sell his horse to survive when a man who was wearing an expensive looking black cowboy hat asked him why he looked so sad. Jungkook told him he couldn’t get money any other way and he had no home to return to. The man gave him a sympathetic look and told him to stay where he was. That he’d be right back. A few minutes later he came back with a shorter man in tow. “My name is Namjoon and this is Yoongi.”, the other man tips his hat at Jungkook “I’d like to make you an offer.” Jungkook was about to say thank you when Namjoon cut him off, “But, I don’t want the horse. We’re looking for a new ranch hand and you look like a hard worker. Would you like to come work for us?” Jungkook immediately says yes. “What’s your name kid?” “Jungkook.” “Where are your parents?” Yoongi asked looking concerned. When Jungkook looked down at the ground trying to come up with an answer Yoongi put his hand on his shoulder. “It’s ok, you don’t have to tell us if you don’t want to.” The two men take Jungkook with them to purchase the two horses they came to the auction for. They then head out for the ten mile ride it takes to get back to their ranch. Namjoon notices that Jungkook’s face looks sunburnt so he asks him if he needs a hat. “No, no it’s ok you don’t have to give me anything, I’m fine.” Namjoon pays him no mind as he takes the obviously expensive hat off his head and places it on Jungkook’s. “Every man needs a good hat.” Six years later Jungkook still wears it. **~~~~~~~** Jungkook took his time looking through his clothes. He finally chose a white button up, the pair of jeans he never wears when he does work and his nice town boots. After he washed up and changed he walked back to where Jin was waiting for him. ”You know we’re just going to town for supplies right?” Jin commented looking him up and down while Jungkook climbed onto the wagon next to him. Jin himself was wearing his work overalls that had leather oil on them. “Yeah, I just felt like dressing up that’s all.” Jin just shrugged and snapped the reigns to get the horse to start moving. When they got into town Jungkook immediately looked toward the school and was disappointed when it seemed like no one was there. Dejectedly, Jungkook got off the wagon and followed Jin to the first shop. “Ok, I made a you a list so we can split up and get it done faster”, Jin said handing Jungkook a piece of paper leaving him in front of the farmer’s market. Jungkook sighed and went into the shop that housed fruits and vegetables and opened the door. He grabbed a woven hand basket from the counter and went for the first item on his list. Apples. Not just any apples either, Jin wrote ‘***GOOD APPLES***’ Which caused Jungkook to stand confused in front of all the different types of apples for a few minutes. “What the hell does ‘good apples’ even mean? I thought all apples were good.” “Would you like some help?”, A sweet sounding voice asked. Jungkook looks to the side and almost gasped when he saw who was talking to him. It was the school teacher, she was stunning up close and her eyes were exceptionally beautiful. She smiles at him and he swears he felt his heart skip a beat. “You seem a little out of your element here.” “Y-yeah.”, Jungkook manages to say while trying to not stare at the woman. He doesn’t know why he’s so infatuated with her. He doesn’t even know her. “Do you know what kind of apples you want?” Jungkook feels his face getting hot because, no. Jin just wrote apples and there’s a bunch of different kinds in front of him. “No, my hyung didn’t write down what kind he wanted.” Jungkook rubbed the back of his neck nervously, “I’m completely lost.” “That’s ok, can I see your list? Maybe I can try to guess what he’s making and get you the right apples for it.” Jungkook handed her the shopping list and their hands briefly touched causing Jungkook to completely stop breathing. The woman started reading the list and mumbling to herself with a look of concentration. Jungkook thought it was was the cutest thing ever. “Ok! I think he’s gonna be making apple pie because he wrote down; flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt, and butter. But you can’t get that here today. Mr. Lee only comes to town with his milk and butter 3 times a week so you’ll have to come back for that tomorrow. But we can definitely get your ‘Good Apples’ today.”, she giggled and he looked at her in awe. How could someone so lovely actually talk to him. He almost felt unworthy of being in her presence. “Ok so I’m going to be biased and get you the apples I personally think are the best for pie. If your Hyung doesn’t like them then tell me and I’ll give you money for different ones.” she said looking over her shoulder at a nodding Jungkook. “I love these ones. They’re ‘Pink Lady’ apples.”, she says grabbing a small light red apple “They’re Sweet but not too sweet. They make the pie come out much better than green apples and their name sounds classy.” She handed it to Jungkook and started picking out the best apples from the pile. After finding 6 perfect apples she put them in the basket he was carrying. Once again accidentally touching him In the process. Jungkook completely froze, he felt as if he was shocked by electricity. “I can help you with rest of your things” the woman said looking up at the poor awestruck man. “I mean only if you want me to...” she added when Jungkook just stared at her without answering worrying that she might have been intruding. Jungkook just nodded, he couldn’t trust himself to speak without fumbling over his words. The woman smiled and spent the next 30 minutes helping him with the rest of Jin’s list. After Jungkook payed the two made their way to the wagon. “Thank you for helping me. I would have been lost for a long time.” “You’re welcome” the teacher smiled at him brightly. “It was my pleasure. By the way what’s your name Mr apple pie?” “Jungkook” the woman pondered that for a second before extending her hand. “I’m y/n” Jungkook silently hoped she wouldn’t notice how sweaty his hand was. If y/n did she didn’t say anything about it while grasping his calloused hand with her smaller and much softer hand. Jungkook felt ashamed when his thoughts immediately when to a dirty place when he imagined her soft hands touching him somewhere else. Mentally slapping himself he snapped out of it before he, as Jimin liked to call it, popped a boner. “Well, Mr. Jungkook, I’ll see you at the school house bright and early tomorrow” she said while turning to walk away. When y/n was gone Jungkook raised his hand to his face to make sure this was all real. With his luck this would end up being a dream. At least it would has been a really good dream. He must have zoned out for a while because he was startled back to reality by Jin clapping him on the shoulder, “Stop staring into la la land and help me tie everything down.” Jungkook took one last look at his hand, “You were right hyung” ...’love at first sight does exist.’ “I’m always right. I don’t know why you’re barely realizing that now”

[reyescarlos]

sanctuary || a tarlos fic

chapter 2/3 read on ao3

It’s been one month since TK packed up his life and headed to Austin for a fresh start. In a new city, he struggles with between defeating old demons and reinventing himself. On a night when he feels close to falling through the cracks, he meets Officer Carlos Reyes, a man who could very well be his salvation.

Two days of casual texting since running into Carlos earlier in the week has led TK to trying out what Carlos promises to be the best meal he’ll ever have. It’s a pretty tall order but TK is more than willing to test out Carlos’ theory. After all, it means actual face to face time with the man he’s quite eager to know better.

Carlos steps up to the truck and begins talking with the staff in Spanish, conversing and placing their orders. TK’s understanding of the language goes as far as twelfth grade and even still, he barely remembers much aside from the basics. He’s only able to piece together a few bits here and there. Regardless, it doesn’t take much for him to see that Carlos is truly a regular at this truck and that the staff genuinely likes him. That doesn’t come as a surprise to TK. Carlos is kindhearted and people like that tend to draw in others like the sun.

As they wait for their order, TK takes in the area around him, the sights, the sounds, and of course the smells. His stomach is practically doing flips and growling the longer he stands around breathing in the delicious smells of meat and peppers and whatever else is being made inside each neighboring truck.

“Come here often?” he muses, using the cheesy pickup line to kick off conversation.

Carlos laughs and nods. “Yeah, it’s my absolute favorite in all of Travis County. It might actually be better than my tía Lucy’s. But if you ever tell her I said that, I will have no other choice but to lie and say I have no idea what you’re referring to.”

TK mimes zipping his lips, tossing away the imaginary key for good measure. “Your secret’s safe with me, I promise.”

Carlos is about to speak when one of the ladies inside the truck calls his name. He turns and heads back to the truck, thanking her and taking the food she hands over. TK spots an empty bench and hurries over to it, taking a seat, Carlos sitting right across from him a few seconds later.

“God, this smells amazing,” TK notes, unwrapping his burrito from its foil and taking a considerable bite. He stifles a moan but doesn’t shy away from tossing his head back. “Holy shit, that’s incredible.”

Carlos laughs at the theatrics. “Like I said, hands down the best in town.”

“I definitely have to come back here soon. Is tomorrow too sudden?” he jokes.

They fall into a comfortable silence as they eat. Every now and then he looks over at Carlos and on some instances, he finds the other man glancing at him too.

“So, what is that you do?” Carlos asks conversationally after a time.

TK licks his lips, pulling in the lower one. It’s a harmless question, in general, but for TK it’s actually a loaded one. When making the move down to Austin, he also made the tough decision not to hop back into work. The time for himself is certainly needed but it makes him anxious thinking about having to explain why he isn’t currently part of the 126.

“I’m a firefighter. Or I was. I’m taking a bit of a break right now,” he finally settles on. It’s a half truth as he hasn’t fully explained but the last thing he wants is to unload all his drama on a man he’s only just met a few days ago.

Carlos considers his words and nods, dipping one of his chips into salsa. TK prepares himself for an onslaught of follow-up questions but they never come. Instead, Carlos gives a response he wasn’t expecting at all.

“I can understand that,” he says, popping the chip into his mouth and making quick work of finishing it off before he speaks again. “What we do isn’t easy. Sometimes you need to take time to recharge before heading back out there again. In order to really help others, we have to be at our best.”

TK can only stare at him. He was so sure Carlos was going to hound him with questions about what prompted the break but instead he opted not to pry at all. TK wasn’t used to that sort of thing. Most people would make it their personal mission to find out the details but not Carlos. Relief soon washes over TK.

“Yeah, definitely. I plan on getting back into the swing of things soon, though. Until then, I just live vicariously through my dad. He’s the new captain over at the 126. Whenever I’m ready, I’ll be working alongside him.”

A part of TK is chomping at the bit to get back to his old routine but he knows he still needs a bit more time to feel as if he’s standing on solid, stable ground again.

“Wait, seriously? My best friend is the EMS captain there.”

“Michelle Blake? No way, I’ve met her a few times. She seems pretty great.”

Carlos nods enthusiastically and laughs. “Damn, maybe you’re right and this town really is too small,” he muses, TK not missing the reference back to their conversation outside the boba shop.

“See? Six degrees of separation is too high of a count for this place.”

Carlos tosses a chip at him but TK is fast and swats it down to the table.

“Jerk. Is that any way to treat your new friend? You wouldn’t want to go giving me the wrong impression of your precious Austin, now would you?”

Carlos makes a face and it’s undoubtedly one of the cutest things TK has ever seen.

“You’re going to be trouble, aren’t you?”

“Oh, man,” TK laughs, “you have no idea.”

~*~*~

At lunch, TK finds himself incapable of looking away from his screen. He and Carlos have been chatting since morning with Carlos sending him updates and random pictures of odd things he sees while out shopping with his aunt Lucy. TK has seen everything from ridiculous items for sale at a thrift store to Carlos frowning in a chair with Lucy’s purse on his lap, reflected in the store’s mirror while his aunt is in the changing room. This most recent image is instantly followed with a text reading “SOS!”

TK grins at his phone, zooming in on Carlos’ face. The furrowed brows, the pleading brown eyes, the pout. It’s almost too much for him to handle.

“Earth to TK. Are you with me here, bud?” Owen says.

TK snaps his head upward, finally tearing his eyes away from his phone. “What’s that now?”

Owen shakes his head and laughs, lightly kicking at his leg. “My god, where is your head today?”

TK smiles bashfully and shakes his head. “Right here on my shoulders.”

“Could have fooled me. I could have sworn I saw it floating in the clouds. What’s going on with you?”

TK opens his mouth to speak but closes it back, shifting in his seat to turn to face his father. Try as he might, TK cannot erase the wide smile that breaks across his lips the second he looks at him, his thoughts already filling up so deeply with images of Carlos’ face. A part of him feels silly for being this caught up with someone he’s just befriended but he and Carlos have spoken every day for the last two weeks. Carlos is truly his first and last thought each day. It’s terrifying and exhilarating all in one breath just how much they’ve grown close to each other. It leaves TK’s head spinning.

“You met someone, didn’t you?” Owen says, his grin mirroring his son’s perfectly.

“Wow, you beat me to it.”

“To be fair, it wasn’t exactly a hard guess to make. Tell me all about him.”

TK draws in a deep breath to collect himself. “His name is Carlos and he is…kind of unreal,” he laughs. He can feel his cheeks warming up. “I don’t know. We talk all the time and it’s just…nice? Normal. It’s good to have a friend in this city.”

“A friend, hmm.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

Owen holds up his hands, letting out a playful laugh. “Nothing, nothing. Friends are great to have but I don’t think I’ve ever seen you get this worked up over one before.”

“Yeah, well, Carlos is a special friend. It’s different with him.”

“Oh, I’m sure it is,” his father says, lifting his brows.

“Seriously, it’s not like that. At least it can’t be right now.”

Owen’s smile fades from his face as he looks at his son and TK can feel a sinking sensation in his chest. He’d be lying if he said he didn’t feel a less than platonic pull towards Carlos but the man knew nothing of his last relationship and the major impact it had on him. There were still so many secrets, ugly truths that TK hadn’t shared yet and was, truthfully, terrified to ever do so. Things with Carlos were light and carefree. For someone like TK who had been living so long with a darkness in him, he wanted to preserve this kind of joy for as long as possible. He thought perhaps it made him selfish to a certain degree but he couldn’t help it. For the first time in over a month, he felt weightless. A feeling like that was too rare and he was in no position to pass it up.

“Why do you say that?”

TK scoffs and shakes his head. “Come on, dad. We both know why we’re down here in the first place. Look at what happened the last time I fell hard for someone.”

“But look at how far you’ve come since then,” his father counters. “Look, you may have a real chance at something great here, whatever it may be. It’s been over a month now, TK. I think it’s time you start taking some wins. You’ve more than earned them. I haven’t seen you this happy in ages.”

TK swallows the lump in his throat, the guilt that rises like bile. His life and actions didn’t only have consequences he had to face. While he knew his father didn’t hold it against him, TK couldn’t help but to feel responsible for them upending their lives and moving away from home.

“I don’t want to wreck this. Carlos is a good guy. Genuinely good, you know? I don’t want to mess that up or put anything bad on him. He doesn’t deserve that.”

Owen searches his face but TK can’t bear it and looks away, back to his plate.

“Tell me about him. How’d you two even meet?”

TK hesitates, fumbling with his fork and turning it over in his hand. He still hasn’t mentioned his panic attack out on the bridge that night. After all, he’d returned home in a better mood than when he left and had been fine in the weeks since so it didn’t seem like something worth mentioning or making his father concerned over. But now, being asked so plainly about how he met Carlos, it feels like something he needs to disclose. TK was skilled at hiding things but he made a vow to himself on the plane ride from JFK to Austin-Bergstrom Airport that he’d truly turn over a new leaf and maintain transparency with his father going forward.

He licks his lips and clears his throat before speaking, avoiding his father’s gaze until he finally speaks.

“When I went out running a few weeks back, I sort of…had a moment. My head was kinda all over the place and I needed a break.”

Owen shifts in his seat, his eyes glued on his son. It was such a bittersweet thing having a father that cared so much at times. On one hand, TK was comforted in knowing that his dad was always willing to listen but on the other, it made him dread his father hearing all the less than pleasant things he had to say from time to time.

“What do you mean?”

TK sets his fork down. “I don’t know. I was thinking a lot about Alex and it just got to feel like too much so I stopped out on the bridge to get myself together.”

“TK—”

“God, no! Not like that. Sorry.” TK sighs and rakes a hand through his hair. “It just so happened that I stopped there. I swear, dad. Anyway, clearly it looked troubling because Carlos was on duty and he came up to me to make sure everything was alright. He got called away to an active B&E and I thought that was the last time I’d see him. But literally the next day, after group, we bumped into each other downtown and exchanged numbers.”

Owen settles back against his seat, his fingers splayed on the dining room table. TK watches the parade of emotions that flit across his father’s face from fear to uncertainty to controlled hurt.

“I should have told you more about that night,” TK admits. “I just didn’t want you to worry. I’m so tired of making you worry.”

Owen places a hand on TK’s shoulder and gives it a gentle, reassuring squeeze.

“Whether you tell me everything or not, I’m always going to worry. That just comes with the gig of being a dad. But what makes it easier is if we’re on the same page at all times.”

TK meets his father’s gaze and nods, worrying his bottom lip. Owen sighs softly and drops his hand, trading a concerned look for a warm smile.

“So, Carlos is a cop. What an interesting first responder pair you guys make,” he teases.

TK is glad for the joke as it alleviates some of the tension in his chest. He laughs and rolls his eyes.

“It’s crazy; what are the odds, right?”

Something warm glints in his father’s eyes and TK is almost moved to tears because of it. He can admit he’s been particularly hard on himself over the last month and a half, so convinced that he shouldn’t even allow himself to move on from Alex. He feared he wasn’t ready and that he couldn’t be trusted. But already, in such a short time, he was willing to give a part of himself to Carlos. He didn’t stand much of a chance, in truth. He couldn’t imagine a single person who wouldn’t be disarmed by the other man.

Owen searches his face for a moment as TK focuses back on their conversation.

“Looks like the tide’s starting to turn for you down here in Austin; things are really picking up. Maybe meeting Carlos is just the thing to make you more comfortable.”

“Yeah, maybe,” he parrots. I hope, he thinks.

~*~*~

The next day TK is in his room folding laundry when his phone lights up on his bed. TK cranes his neck to read the text from Carlos.

Hey, you busy tonight?

TK puts down the shirt in his hand and grabs his phone to reply, seeing that Carlos is already typing out another message to him. He waits for it to come in.

If you are, feel free to ignore me. I know it’s kind of short notice to be making plans.

TK can only roll his eyes to this. How many times and how many ways does he have to show Carlos he has nothing else going on in the Austin? And even if he did, Carlos would always be the better option; any plans he may have had could easily be tossed to the backburner.

Ah, yes, let me check my oh so busy schedule. Please hold.

A few seconds later he sends:

Hmm, sitting around the house doing nothing. Online shopping. Scrolling through social media right before bed...yeah, sorry. Booked solid for the evening, I’m afraid

He takes a moment to appreciate his own humor before his phone is vibrating with an incoming call from Carlos.

“How may I help you?” he greets.

“Do you make it your mission every day to be a pain in the neck?” Carlos’ voice is so light and teasing it makes TK’s heart clench in his chest. He wonders if he’ll ever get used to the way they complement each other so perfectly.

“We all have special skills in life. One of mine just happens to be pushing your buttons, what can I say?”

Carlos groans and sighs. “What have I gotten myself into?” There’s no bite to it. If anything, TK can practically see the smile he knows is painted on Carlos’ lips right now.

“I told you there was no going back. So, what’s going on tonight?”

“Ah, right. I thought we could hang out and I could take you to one of my favorite bars downtown.”

TK’s shoulders stiffen at the mention of a bar. He hasn’t stepped foot in one in what feels like forever. He knows he isn’t obligated to drink and that Carlos probably wouldn’t even notice or care if he didn’t indulge. It’s just been easier to eliminate the temptation by steering clear altogether. But a Friday night out with Carlos isn’t something he can shy away from, especially not when Carlos sounds excited to share something special to him.

“Yeah, I could go for that,” he replies.

“Yeah? Great. I’ll text you the address and we could meet up around 9 or so. I hope you’re ready for some dancing.”

“Is this going to be a hoedown? A real, genuine Texan hoedown?”

Carlos’ laugh is strong and clear. TK feels like patting himself on the back for job well done. His favorite thing these last two weeks has been making that sound come about. It does something to his heart to know that Carlos is happy, mainly because of him.

“Yup. I’m looking forward to seeing your moves, New York.”

“I won’t disappoint. I can promise you that much.”

“I never had a doubt.”

TK opens his mouth to reply but can’t. His heart is racing and all he can picture is the two of them out on the dance floor, moving together. It’s an image that lays down roots in his mind and grows so large it’s all he can see.

“Damn, I have to get back to work but I’ll see you tonight, alright?” Carlos says, bringing TK back to the present moment. “I’ll send you the address in just a minute. See ya.”

The call ends before TK can even get a word out but he figures that’s for the best. Carlos has managed to stun him into silence, a feat not many people are capable of.

So maybe his budding friendship is proving to have more weight to it than he wants it to. All the telltale signs of a crush are there, regardless of if TK is ready for them to be or not. It’s not as if he had much of a choice, he reasons. Right from the start Carlos caught his eye and every day that they’ve spoken since has only served to strengthen that. The other man would make such offhanded remarks but TK had to wonder if Carlos was even aware or if it just came by so naturally that he truly didn’t notice. TK wasn’t sure which he preferred.

If Carlos wasn’t being intentional in his flirting, then they were truly just friends and he could be okay with that. Simply having someone to talk to so frequently that wasn’t related to him was a major win. But if there was some sort of hidden code behind his words, TK was almost nervous about uncovering it. In a life post-Alex, he hadn’t been prepared for the possibility of meeting someone he could actually see himself with. But maybe he was alone in thinking there was even something here. And that, TK knew above anything else, was the worst conclusion of all.

~*~*~

“I don’t know what I was expecting but this wasn’t it,” TK says as he and Carlos enter the bar.

“Maybe you’ve seen too many movies? It’s clouding your judgement.” Carlos bumps his shoulder lightly against TK’s arm.

“You might have a point there.”

It’s a lively night and the place is comfortably filled with people already out on the dance floor, moving along to the music being played by a live band in the corner. TK stays close to Carlos’ side even though the place isn’t that crowded and they aren’t likely to get separated. But Carlos doesn’t seem bothered by their proximity. He merely throws a warm smile over his shoulder at him as he leads them to the bar and TK does his best not to melt right there on the spot.

“What are you drinking?” Carlos asks, holding up his fingers to signal the bartender.

“I’m good with mineral water for now,” he replies casually, his eyes fixed on Carlos to see his reaction but the man simply nods and orders for them when the bartender comes over, opening a tab.

If there’s one thing TK has been learning about Carlos these last few weeks is that he doesn’t push in the way virtually everyone else he knows would have. TK appreciates that more than he’ll probably ever be able to express to Carlos.

He takes the glass Carlos hands him, slick with condensation and thanks him. TK is unable to pull his eyes away from Carlos’ mouth as it takes a sip from his beer bottle, his throat going a little dry. He soothes it with a swig of his mineral water and averts his gaze and instead focuses on something safer like the crowd of people dancing. The music becomes a bit more folky and the footwork a bit more intricate but TK is fairly confident he can follow along easily enough.

“Don’t think I’ve forgotten,” Carlos says, forcing TK to glance back at him.

“What? About me dancing? Pfft, I can hold my own out there.”

Carlos eyes him from top to bottom and back again. It’s such a simple move and yet it makes TK’s skin tingle to be held in his gaze. Not for the first time since meeting Carlos, he wonders what the man thinks when he looks at him. Smugly, he hopes Carlos feels the energy between them too. Surely, he does, TK reasons. There was nothing casual about that look just now.

“Alright, let’s see it then.” Carlos downs the rest of his beer and sets it down on the bar. TK follows suit, finishing off his drink in kind.

He isn’t expecting Carlos to reach for his hand but he gives it up willingly, feeling warmth course through him that has absolutely nothing to do with being surrounded by people. Carlos leads them right to the center of the dance floor, a large smile on his face. He doesn’t waste a single second in falling into line with everyone else. TK does his best, trying hard not to look at his feet. That’d be a dead giveaway that line dancing is kind of a foreign concept to him. He manages well enough after a few seconds.

“There you go,” Carlos encourages.

TK can’t take his eyes off him. There’s something just so alluring about watching Carlos move freely, completely at ease and assured in his movements.

They keep dancing for a while, TK relaxing into it and matching Carlos beat for beat. The music eventually changes to something slower, couples remaining on the dancefloor and settling in close to each other. TK looks around at everyone before glancing to Carlos who gives him a questioning look. TK gives a small smile, silent confirmation that he doesn’t mind having this dance with Carlos. He keeps his eyes on Carlos’ face, trying to decipher the expression in them. It’s like he can see it all in real time, Carlos making the decision to try for something a little more. The man brings his face closer but TK stiffens in his hold and takes a step back.

“I think I’m gonna get some air. Just a sec,” he says, pursing his lips and walking off.

He’s cursing himself for panicking and being a coward. The most frustrating thing is knowing that had he been in a different place mentally, he absolutely would have followed through on kissing Carlos. He’s spent a fair bit of time over the last two weeks picturing what that would feel like. Here it was now the opportunity was presenting itself and TK’s initial reaction was to run.

He stands outside of the bar, leaning against the building with his eyes closed, replaying the exchange over and over.

“Do you just want to get out of here?” he hears Carlos say. When he opens his eyes, Carlos is standing right in front of him, his face unreadable. “We could go for a drive, if that’s alright with you.”

TK pulls in a breath and nods. What he wants to do is apologize a million times and let Carlos know that none of this is his fault. Carlos is truly perfect, almost scarily so as far as TK is concerned. He can barely take the shift in Carlos’ mood. Not even five minutes ago the man was smiling brightly. Now he looked unsure and uneasy, all because of TK. If he could have even a minute to explain, TK would be grateful. A car ride with just the two of them was ideal.

Carlos nods too and leads the way over to his car, the two of them climbing inside. Neither of them says a word as Carlos brings the car to life and begins to drive. TK knows he should be the one to break the silence but his thoughts are a riot in his mind and nothing makes sense. Every time he starts to form a sentence in his head, the words don’t sound right. Carlos keeps driving, eventually coming up to an empty area.

He stops the car and looks over at TK. In his eyes is fear and concern, so much so that TK feels guilty, already able to see that Carlos blames himself for the awkwardness earlier. It’s so incorrect and misdirected but Carlos is already speaking before TK can even dispel the man’s thoughts.

“I’m sorry about before. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.” Carlos’ chest rises and falls heavily. TK isn’t used to seeing him uneasy and it doesn’t sit well.

“God, Carlos, no. You didn’t—I’m the one who should be apologizing.”

TK sighs and tilts his head back against his seat. The silence in the car presses down on his ears but he needs a few seconds to get his thoughts in order.

“The whole ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ thing completely applies here, as cliché as it is,” he starts out, turning his head to look at Carlos.

Carlos’ expression is so serious, like he’s truly giving his full attention over to TK, like he sincerely wants to understand what he’s thinking or how he can help. The level of kindness and sincerity Carlos has shown him since day one is unparalleled and given how his last relationship ended, TK is in awe of the fact that someone is willing to extend this generosity to him.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me yet. In time, I really do want to share it with you because I think you could be good for me. Knowing you has already been good for me and you don’t even realize it.”

TK swallows thickly before pressing on. Carlos remains perfectly still, searching his face. TK can’t help the fluttering sensation in the pit of his stomach. This man owes him nothing and yet here he is, willing to hear him out.

“I was a bit of a mess back home. I was in a pretty serious relationship that sort of blew up in my face and I just…I couldn’t stay in the city anymore. My dad got offered the job down here and the timing…it seemed like the univere’s way of giving me something of a clean slate. I’m not where I want to be exactly but I’m working on it.”

He stops short then, his breathing shaky. This was more than he thought he’d share with Carlos this early on and while it feels scary to admit to such heavy things, it’s also freeing. Carlos may be new to his life but every instinct of TK’s is telling him that he can trust this man beside him.

Carlos finally moves, reaching out and holding onto TK’s hand. He doesn’t lace their fingers or anything, just simply holds on to it, as if reminding TK that there’s someone here with him. TK’s eyes start to sting with unshed tears.

“Thank you for telling me,” Carlos says. “I know it couldn’t have been easy. We don’t…I’m just happy to be your friend, honest. We don’t have to make something of this. Seriously, just knowing you is enough.”

Despite his best efforts to stop them, TK can feel traitorous tears running down his cheeks but he can’t find it within himself to be embarrassed over it. Being around Carlos is like existing in a judgement free zone. With his free hand, he wipes at his face and Carlos gives him a soft smile. The sight alone is like a balm over TK’s hurt.

Carlos leans forward, resting his forehead against TK’s. It’s such a tender expression that TK’s breath hitches and his heart skips a beat.

“You’re going to be okay,” Carlos says softly, confidently as if he has some crystal ball that can predict this.

Either way, TK gladly takes the assurance as a fact, clinging to that promise like a life raft in a heavy storm.

[youngbugandtonystank]

Please write an irondad post about how peter feels about tony!! I feel like the directors make peter’s view of tony more subtle than Tony’s view of peter and it’d be awesome if you could decode it! ;0

Hi!

God, Tom’s words really got me♥

I’m going to use the movies and novelizations for this, especially the Homecoming novelization since I think no one talks about it and I want to point out certain things.

Ok, check this out:

Tony’s POV:

Peter's voice was as exuberant and light as ever, something Tony both secretly admired and feared.  This battle would be no place for someone as green and unbroken as Peter Parker.

Tony smiled as Peter stood tall in the center.

"Yeah, that makes sense"  Peter said, and Tony's heart broke. Even hanging off the side of a spaceship hurtling into space, seconds from dying, Peter Parker was still just open and trusting as he'd always been.

--

Peter’s POV:

"What if she’s expecting someone like Tony Stark? I mean, imagine how disappointed she’d be when she sees me."

dorks.

I just wanted to be like you.

And I wanted you to be better.

You know that feeling you get when you admire someone and at the same time, you feel like you can actually understand them? Yeah, this is them. They work like a mirror. This is how Peter feels, just like Tony sees himself in the kid, Peter identifies himself in Tony. Peter and Tony both react the same way when it comes to their relationship. They both think the other is ‘better’ and at the same time, they can understand each other pretty well.

Tony’s POV:

At the same time, Tony knew there was nothing he could do to keep Peter away. Just like Tony, Peter had a code. 

Peter’s POV:

Of course, Mr. Stark hadn't believed him. He'd seen right through him.

Peter has stated before that Tony made him feel okay and normal, something he never thought he’d feel again. He knows that if he gets Tony’s approval then he gets to feel that normalcy again. He feels understood.

It was probably the only place in the city where I fit in. You had your overachievers, genius-level-yet-stressed-out-obsessive-compulsives, inventors of the Next Big Thing, all with at least one overblowing backpack, all wiling in to forge new ground and show the world that nerds really would inherit the earth. I was surrounded by students showing off their newest advances in AI technology, “rebels” furiously hacking their way to exposing corruption online, friends discussing string theory, and the probabilities of Stephen Hawking’s multiverse.

This is how Peter thinks of himself, he thinks his school is probably the only place he fits in. I think I mentioned this before in my homecoming analysis but Peter’s need to be an Avenger is because 1. he truly wants to make a difference, 2.he’s bored, he’s a genius kid and school is not doing enough for him anymore and 3. he feels like Tony is the only one that can understand him.

I don’t understand exactly why but some people think Peter is dumb. He can be clumsy sometimes but this kid is a genius and he understands the struggles of having a brain like his.

“Do geniuses know how normal things like backpacks even work?“

“Yes, we are familiar,“ Peter replied with a weak smile. If only she knew...

--

“Right as always,” Ms. Warren said, her praise causing Flash to stare daggers at me. Whatever.

--

“Yeah, my parents feel guilty working all the time, you guys would really get along, Peter” Her joke hit a little close to home, and I looked down a little.

--

He looked from the ship to the other kids on the bus to see if anyone else saw it. Nothing. Just him. As usual.

Peter not only wants the understanding that comes from Tony, but he also wants someone he can relate to. And I’m not talking about money or fame, I’m talking something deeper.

When they were on the plane, Peter criticized Tony’s choice of food as if telling him that what he was eating wasn’t enough to be considered ‘food’ and then proceeded to only have some juice and sleep the rest of the trip because he recklessly pulled an all-nighter. lmao irondad stans you guys are always accurate with your fics. 

Also, are you really going to tell me that this is not what a relationship between a father and a son look like?

"I really don't want to sound like my old man here. Look, kid, Just forget the flying man. Stay closer to the ground in Queens, build up your game helping the little people. You know, like the old lady who bought you that churro." That churro. Happy had told him everything. "Look, Tony—uh, Mr. Stark," I started. --

My suit agreed. "It does seem unwise. Trespassers are prosecuted. Or shot' "It's worse than that—if they find me in here, Mr. Stark is gonna kill me!" I started to panic. I had to get out of here! --

"Okay, sorry, Mr. Stark" I sighed. "I know you said to keep a low profile, but I gotta get out" I started banging on the door.

--

Tony Stark's words echoed in my head: Keep doing what you're doing, saving the little people.... Except these weren't just the little people"—they were my friends. As long as they were safe, everything would be okay. I didn't need to wait for that call to be an Avenger. I was already Spider-Man.

I just love how they unconsciously treated each other like family.

Peter, just like any other teenager, looks for validation from people he admires. In the Homecoming Novelization Peter congratulates himself every time he does something good and loves it when it comes from Tony for the same reasons I listed before.

Finally, we pulled up a safe distance from the apartment, so we didn’t attract too much attention. We sat in some seriously awkward silence for a moment before Mr. Stark finally said something.“Ya did good, kid,”

“I did good? I did good!“

“It’s yours,” Stark replied. “You earned it.” My heart was going a mile a minute. “Awesome!”

Look at them mirroring each other when it comes to them and how they feel.

Peter’s POV

“Yeah, and pretty soon it’s going to lead to a real job with him,” I said, trying to convince both him and myself.

Something really cute about them is that they both are exactly as you guys picture them in fanfics. They don’t say each other’s first name but think of each other that way.

Peter’s POV

“I thought I was gonna freeze up after Tony yelled out ‘Underoos.”

That churro. Happy had told him everything. "Look, Tony—uh, Mr. Stark," I started.

Tony’s POV

Tony had only continued onto the ship because he felt certain that he'd gotten Peter safely out of harm's way.

"Kid! Where'd you come from?" Iron Man asked, his voice sounding a little too relieved and grateful for his taste. 

They refuse to call each other by their names even if in IW they already had a more solid relationship than in HOCO, for them it’s ‘Kid’ and ‘Mr. Stark’. They even have other nicknames, as you already know but one of the cutest nicknames is ‘boss man’. Tom Holland calls RDJ that in real life and they used that nickname in the novelization.

When RDJ said this: 

The amount of betrayal Stark has had to deal with and what it's like to try and open up to someone new. The actor points out that Peter is young and that treachery comes with age. That his character is more willing to trust Peter because of his age. And how the relationship was established in the previous film when Tony shuts Peter down after he's been hurt. Not a move Tony would've done with most of the other Avengers, expecting them to push through just as he would.

He’s absolutely right, as you can see, they both banter but at the same time Tony opens up to Peter without hesitation.

trust

"So where are you?" I asked, looking around suspiciously. I half expected to see a drone In the sky spying on me. 

"India." came the response. "I thought I'd hit up a Hindu temple. Center myself. That sort of thing."

banter

 "Thank God this place has WI-Fi or you would have drowned."

 "I had a strategy." I did not have a strategy.

 'What, to die and fight him in the afterlife?"

Another example of them mirroring each other is in IW. It's been said in the novels that Tony making Peter an Avenger when did was something he considered a big choice and major sacrifice. He truly didn’t want him on the team, not because he thought Peter wasn’t capable, but because he wasn’t ready for Peter to be that. Meanwhile, Peter, who knows Tony is pretty much capable on his own, said he stuck himself to the side of the ship in IW because he thought about Tony. 

The same level of protectiveness, same thoughts.

Like a mirror.

.

Also how cute are Peter’s thoughts about Liz?

Liz walked by with the rest of the Homecoming committee, and the entire world seemed to melt away around her.

“It’s working for her.” I stared at her outfit and agreed that it was definitely working for her. OUR SPIDEY BOI IS FLIRTY AF

She was thinking of me. The warm fuzzies started.

Liz defending Peter from Flash?:

“I can’t believe we’re catering to him. We don’t need this dork.” Good. There was my opening to break it to them that—“As team captain, I disagree,” Liz cut in.

"No way!" he objected. "You can't just quit on us and then turn around and stroll up here and—"  "Flash. Liz cut him off, her voice leaving no doubt as to who the captain was.

Liz smiled at me as I took my seat. Don't blush. Don't blush. I blushed and gave a small smile back as I settled in next to Ned for the trip to Washington, DC.

And Peter’s eternal beef with Betty either sharing Ned or with Spider-Man. I love for this friendship lmao

[minuky]

Catnip

I’m more of an artist than a writer, but hey, I can only get better with practice!

(Based on an idea I had)

“And now, I am officially open!” Marinette exclaimed, flipping her welcome sign from Closed to Open. She clasped her hands together, turning to face her companion. Said companion stood in the center of the small shop, admiring all the decor. She turned to face Mari, a wide smile on her face.

“Marinette Dupain Cheng, have I ever told you how proud I am of you?” Alya strode over to Marinette, enveloping her in a hug. “Look at this! Your very own shop.” She suddenly brought out her phone. “I have to tell Nino! He’d be so thrilled!”

Marinette giggled. “I’m sure he would.” Sighing, she looked around the room. “I can’t believe I actually did this.” 

Alya scoffed. “I’m shocked you didn’t get it done sooner, to be honest. But hey! You have a shop where you not only dish out the best gardening advice in all of the world, but you also use some of your very own homegrown flowers to make amazing floral arrangments. You’re going to be swamped in no time! Plus,” Alya shook her phone a little, “Once I’ve written about it on the old blog, I’m sure you’ll get even more attention.”

Laughing, Marinette moved behind the front counter. “I hope so. And I really appreciate you offering to make a post about The Ladybug’s Garden.”

“Pfftt, as if I’d pass up the opportunity to help my best friend!” She joined Marinette behind the counter, throwing an arm over her shoulder. “And this is an up and coming area anyways. Your shop is a great starting point to talk about this part of town.”

“Now that you mention it,” Marinette started, crossing her arms over her chest, “I don’t really know what else is in the area.”

Alya sighed, shaking her head. “Typical Marinette. Well, there’s a couple of very nice little restaurants that have been getting more popular, I think there’s a nice little boutique nearby, and I think there’s an animal shelter down the street.”

“An animal shelter?”

Alya nodded. “Yup. That’s actually where Nino and I got our dog, Trixx. It’s family-owned. The lady who was running the place was very sweet.”

“That’s super cute! Oh, I should take them a bouquet or a plant!” Marinette started moving around the shop, mumbling to herself. 

Alya chuckled, watching her friend fondly. “Oh Marinette. You are adorable.”

---

The following morning, Marinette headed over to the animal shelter. In her hands was a small potted orchid. 

Alright Marinette, an orchid is a nice flower. They’re safe for animals and not too difficult to take care of. Plus they’re pretty!

Steeling her nerves, Marinette faced the animal shelter. It was much bigger than her shop, but still had a homey look to it. Though, there weren’t many plants around. 

Opening the front door, a gentle chime rang out. Marinette stepped in, looking around the front room. It was small, cozy, with a desk near the entrance. Behind the desk, a door stood closed. There were no people in the room, but there was a large black cat laying across the desk.

“Um, hello? Is anyone here?” Marinette approached the front desk, calling out. The cat looked up at her, an unreadable expression on its face. 

“Oh! I’m sorry kitty. I didn’t mean to wake you.” She extended her hand to the cat cautiously. “Mine name is Marinette. Who are you?”

The cat stared at her hand for a moment, then began the rub its face on her hand.

“Aw, you’re a sweetheart, aren’t you?” She giggled, scratching behind the cat’s ears.

The door behind the desk opened, revealing a tall, blonde man. He wore an old white shirt and paint-splattered jeans, and his hair was mussed up. 

“Oh, I didn’t realize someone was here. Are you here to adopt a pet?”

Marinette cleared her throat. “O-oh, oh no, I’m not- I’m new to the area!” Marinette stopped scratching the cat on the desk, to which the cat looked very disgruntled. “I’m Marinette Dupain-Cheng, I opened a store down the road a bit. The Ladybug’s Garden? It’s a gardening shop. I also do flower arrangments!”

The man nodded. “Oh, yeah, a friend of mine mentioned that something was being opened. Well, I’m Adrien. Adrien Agreste. Welcome to Endless Pawsabilities!” He gestured to the cat on the desk. “This is Plagg, he’s our new unofficial mascot.” 

Marinette placed the orchid on the desk. “Unofficial?”

Adrien chucked. “Yeah. I finally convinced my parents we should have a mascot, and Plagg’s been with the family since I was little.” He started scratching the cat’s head. “He may look like a bit of a grump, but he’s a huge softy. Aren’t you Plagg?” 

“Aw, that’s cute!” Marinette giggled a little.

“So, a gardening shop huh? You sell plants and stuff?”

Marinette nodded. “Yup. Plants, gardening supplies, that kind of stuff. I can also help people out with gardening tips!”

“Oh?” Adrien leaned against the desk. “Well, Miss Marinette, could I ask for some of that advice?”

“Uh, sure! Do you wanna know more about the orchid?”

Adrien waved his hand. “Nah. Well, I mean yes, but I meant more for the front of the building. As you probably saw, it’s all barren, and I think some nice foliage would be nice to bring some attention to us. But I don’t want anything that would harmful to any strays.”

“Oh, alright. Well, there’s Aspidistra elatior, or the Cast Iron plant, their pretty hard and safe, you could probably get some Polka dot plants in the ground and they’ll be safe, plus they’ll add some color… Oh and some catnip. It also helps keep away mosquitoes!”

Adrien had a strange expression on his face, his mouth slightly ajar. “Catnip. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it earlier…”

Marinette giggled. “Well, if you or your parents stop by the shop later, I could help you plan out something more concrete. In the meantime, let me tell you about this little g-” She paused midsentence, her eyes focused on the orchid.

“Marinette?”

“Look, there’s a little ladybug on the orchid. It must have flown on when I was walking here.” She extended a finger, allowing the small red bug to crawl on her hand. “Hello there, little Tikki.”

Adrien stared at Marinette, his cheeks noticeably pinker. “Tikki?”

Marinette chuckled sheepishly. “Oh, it’s just a dumb thing from when I was a kid. I found a ladybug in my garden when I was a little girl, and nicknamed it Tikki. I wanted to keep it as a pet, but you know… Bugs.” She shrugged. “I just kept calling every ladybug Tikki.”

“That’s really cute.”

Marinette blushed. “I, uh, thank you!” She gave Adrien a small smile.

The ladybug then flew off of Marinette’s finger, gave a little circle around, and then landed quite contentedly on Plagg’s head, who didn’t seem to notice or care about the new friend he had. 

“That is the cutest thing I have ever seen in my entire life.”

“A symbol of good and bad luck in harmony. That’s insane.”

Marinette and Adrien looked back at one another, then quickly looked away, blushing even more.

“I uh, I better get going. Gotta ya know, open up shop!”

Adrien nodded. “Of course of course. I’ll see you around?”

“Y-yeah of course! It was nice meeting you, Adrien!”

“Nice meeting you too Marinette!”

---

As the door closed behind her, Marinette let out a small sigh. She brought her hands up to her face, letting out a small scream. As she began to walk towards her shop, she pulled out her phone, furiously beginning to message Alya.

---

As the door closed in the shelter, Adrien let out the breath he didn’t know he had been holding. He pulled out his phone, dialing Nino’s number. As the phone rang, he looked towards Plagg, who looked at Adrien with what could only be described as a smirk. How this cat smirked, Adrien would never know. He extended his finger to the ladybug, smiling softly as it crawled onto his hand. The ringing came to a halt as Nino picked up the call.

“Hey Adrien, wassup dude?”

“Nino… I think I’m in love.”

[badjoices]

My Life With You

IV. So There's This Guy... Dean's been spotted around town and made quite the impression on the local singles. (All chapers can be read stand-alone)

Read on AO3 | Fic Masterpost

The sun was long past the horizon, the high street illuminated by the yellow-amber glow of the street-lights and the dim coloured lights spilling out from the bars. The spring air was cool and still, the whoops and hollers of the rowdy Friday night crowds echoed through the centre of town.

In one of the bars that lined the street, a group of early-thirties women gathered together to toast to another week of work behind them. Pushing past their exhaustion was their relief, their ecstatic joy at being free at last, even if only for two days. The ladies sat around a high circular table covered in a rainbow of different fruity cocktails, curly straws, and paper umbrellas. Already the table was littered with empty glasses of drinks long since backed.

“So…” began one woman, Rachel, pushing her long blonde hair behind her shoulder. “I saw the hottest guy at the playground the other day.”

Tia, a tattooed, bespectacled brunette, leaned in eagerly. “Oh?”

Rachel gave a knowing look to her friend before she began her story…

“It was on Wednesday, on my day off. I took Ethan out to the playground near my house, and it was all normal; the usual moms and nannies,

“Anyway, then I spot this guy helping his little kid, the cutest kid by the way, on the slide. There are a few dads around sometimes, you know, but this guy- when I tell you he was cute, it’s an understatement,

“He was so good with his kid too. The way he smiled at that kid, it was like he felt just so lucky to have him. Every five seconds he was squeezing him, or ruffling his hair, or kissing him on his little forehead.

“I just thought, I bet he’d make such an amazing step-dad, maybe I should get on that. A guy like that’s definitely not single I bet. I don’t know if he’s married, I couldn’t see a wedding ring from where I was sitting, but I was pretty far away.”

“So you didn’t speak to him?” a third woman, Sara, with hair in a neat puff and arms wrapped tight in a thick cardigan, asked, straw perched just below her lip poised to take another sip.

“No, I just watched him from afar.” Rachel sighed dreamily, recounting the man’s devilish smile and angled jaw in her mind.

“Why not?” Tia pushed, playfully slapping her friends arm. “You need to get back out there since Mike.” she spits the name and follows up with a gagging gesture.

“I know, I know.” Rachel shrugs, shrinking somewhat from her earlier excitement. “I’m still working up to it, but if I see him again I swear I will.”

The fourth woman, Yulia, took a big sip of her mojito, almost like a deep inhale, then added. “I have a cute guy story too.”

Tia perked up immediately and starting bouncing in her seat. “Okay, okay, spill.”

“So,” Yulia began, fiddling with her tall glass and nervously shuffling in her seat. “He’s been coming into the café every morning to get coffee,

“He’s tall- actually not that tall, maybe six foot? But still - tall. Anyway, he came in on Thursday morning and he actually made conversation with me. When he got up to the counter he gestured up to the menu and was like ‘I don’t know what half these things mean’. And I just laughed really nervously; it was so embarrassing. His smile was so pretty, you guys, I just melted. Then he said ‘Cas is the one who knows about all this stuff, I can’t keep up, you know, coffee is coffee.’

“I think Cas is his wife or something ‘cause then I clocked he had a wedding ring on. Shame. Anyway I just said ‘yeah’ really awkwardly in a sort of half swoon; I couldn’t come up with anything to say. Then he goes on to order the most complicated drink with like, three different flavour shots in it. He says ‘it’s not for me’ like he’s so embarrassed about it, it was so cute. I was like ‘no judgement, you can order whatever you like’. I really didn’t mean to sound so thirsty.

“Then he leaves and, I don’t wanna admit this, but I watched him go, you know. Nice ass.”

Sara, who was seemingly the most composed of the four, shook her head, snickering at her usually timid and reserved friend openly thirsting for coffee shop guy. Tia was frowning, trying to string together a thought that was forming messily and incoherently in her slightly tipsy mind.

“That kinda sounds like the guy who fixed my car…” Tia mused, voice a little slurred.

“Oh my gosh,” Yulia gasped, more excited than this particular revelation really called for. “I think coffee shop guy did say he was a mechanic at one point.”

“Wouldn’t it be crazy if it was actually the same guy though,” Tia said, before taking a big sip through her straw. “The car guy was really hot too. Like, I was twirling my hair the whole time laughing at everything he said.”

“Oh my god, Tia,” Sara shook her head. “Did you know he was married?”

“Yeah I saw the ring, whatever,” Tia laughed. “I bet I can steal that bitch’s man.”

“God, stop it.” Sara scolded through her laughter.

“Seriously, unless she is the perfect vessel of divine beauty, I could totally steal him,” Tia continued. “I mean, when I came to pick up my car there was definitely something there,

“I walked up and he, unprompted, was like ‘you’re the girl with a cute little bug, right?’. I was like,” Tia stuck out her chest, letting her cleavage peek out of her tank top in a cartoonish pose, and began to speak with an over-the-top sultry tone.

“‘Yeah, that’s me; cute girl for the cute bug.’. And then he laughed a little bit. Then he even commented on my tattoos he was like ‘nice sleeve’ and we talked about them a little bit and I asked him if he had any and he said he has one, but it’s on his chest. So… I was a little brave and I said ‘Oh, well you can show me some time if you want’ and I could have sworn he got a little flustered.”

“He probably got flustered because he was at work and he’s married!” Sara protested.

“Maybe,” Tia conceded with an unbothered shrug. She seemed a little lost in her thoughts. “He looked so good with a little car grease on him though. I’d buy a calendar of that guy. You know, I would so objectify him.”

“Tia, please.” Rachel grimaced. “Here’s me talking about a sweet loving father, and then there’s you flirting with a married mechanic.”

“I mean, not to be judgemental,” Sara added. “But how do you know he’s not like a typical misogynistic macho type?”

“What, just because he’s a mechanic? That’s so judgemental, Sara, you can’t make assumptions like that.” Yulia scoffed. “He seemed really sweet. When he was talking about his wife, you could tell he really loves her. I didn’t get a typical ‘I hate my wife’ vibe from him.” Yulia gave a sympathetic look to Tia. “Sorry, Tia.”

“Doesn’t matter, I still think I have a shot.” Tia shrugged. “What ‘bout you, Sara? You got your eye on anybody? Some nerdy glasses guy who reads Jane Austen or whatever it is you’re into.”

Sara rolled her eyes. “Actually yeah, a really sweet guy came into the library this week with his kid. He’s probably too old for me, and I think he’s married, but he had dark hair and really nice blue eyes,

“He took out a bunch of picture books and he told me that he’d just moved here recently. He also borrowed some gardening books, which was like, swoon. He just seemed so genuinely sweet and honest. The way he spoke was just… kind?”

“He’s definitely gay.” Tia asserted. Sara just gave her a weary look. “I’m just saying every guy you like turns out to be gay. You have a type, and it’s gay guys.”

“No way! Dan wasn’t gay.” Sara pouted.

“Yeah, but he was bi, and he moved to Florida to be with his boyfriend Julian.” Rachel added.

“Well technically I had a shot with him. You know, before he moved to Florida.” Sara said, deflated. “I mean, library guy didn’t seem gay. Not that it matters anyway.”

“How does someone seem gay?” Yulia pondered honestly.

“Well it’s not like there’s one set of traits for gay people,” Tia said. “But I think a pretty good predictor is if Sara has a crush on them.”

“Shut up.”

“Woah guys, oh my god!” Rachel hissed, patting Yulia’s arm furiously. “The guy, the hot dad, he just walked in. Don’t look, but he’s right by the bar!”

The other three immediately started craning their necks, very obviously, to get a good look. There at the bar seeming to be ordering a pair of drinks was hunter, husband, and father; Dean Winchester.

“Dude, that’s the car guy.��� Tia said, getting a good look by standing up on her tippy toes.

“Yeah, that’s coffee guy.” Yulia confirmed.

Tia sat back down. “Don’t tell me that’s library guy too?”

“No,” Sara shook her head. “Library guy had dark hair, remember.”

“Uhhh, that him?” Tia said, pointing towards the table that Dean was quickly approaching, two beers in hand, where a smiling Castiel sat in wait.

Sara gasped. “That is him.”

Dean, as soon as he had placed the two bottles down on the table, leant down to plant a quick kiss on Cas’s lips. As he pulled away, the girls could see Cas smiling up at Dean, his gentle gaze soft and sincere, while Dean looked back at Cas like he was looking at the most precious thing he’d ever laid eyes on, which he was.

The ladies sat in stunned silence; what they’d just witnessed was somehow disheartening and heartwarming all at once. Tia was the first to speak.

“Sara, you’re cursed.”

[ginnyweatherby]

A World That Once Had Color

I don’t know where the theme for this story came from, I just sat down to write some Dan and Diana fluff and the rest followed.  It’s kind of long (about 3500 words), but if anyone is looking for a collection of little scenes between these two, I hope this is satisfactory.  If I had to put a summary on this fic it would probably be “Those weeks full of joy, then a moment of dread”.  Make of that what you will.

General angst warnings including the death of a child because well, it is Next to Normal, after all.  Tagging @panicatyourfandoms because they seemed interested.

Pink

Diana cursed under her breath, clutching the thin white stick tightly in her hand.  Pink.  It was pink, with two distinct lines taunting her through the tiny window.

Oh, she was going to kill Dan… scratch that, her parents would kill him first.

How could she let this happen?  How did this happen?  They were safe and protected, just as they always were.  They may have been young, drunk, and stupid, but they weren’t that stupid.

A knock on the door shook the fantasies of murdering her boyfriend in cold blood from her mind’s eye.  It was probably just her roommate forgetting her key again.

Diana tucked the stick in her pocket as she opened the door.  Dan.  Of course.  She’d forgotten they had plans tonight.

“Hey, sweetie,”  He leaned down and kissed her cheek, frowning when she didn’t greet him back.  “Di?  Everything okay?”

Diana froze.  She didn’t know what to say.  Everything was certainly not okay, but how was she supposed to tell him she was technically carrying his - their - child inside of her uterus?

Dan took her hands and led her over to her bed, sitting down beside her.  “Di, talk to me.  Something’s wrong, I can tell.”

Of course he could tell.  He could always tell.  She thought about lying, but he would be able to tell that too - not to mention, he would have to find out eventually.

“I’m pregnant,”  Diana said softly.  So softly she wasn’t sure she’d spoken at all.

But she must have, for Dan pulled his hands away as if he’d been burned.

This was it.  He was going to leave her.  He was going to yell at her, and call her names.  He was going to make her raise this baby all on her own, blame her for ruining his life.  She was going to end up a poor, homeless, single mother, begging for food on the streets while he -

“Diana!”

She blinked.  Dan was staring at her again, but he didn’t look angry.  In fact, there was a soft kindness to his eyes that she hadn’t been expecting.

“Diana, I asked if you felt alright,”  He said, pulling her hands back into his lap.

“Oh, fine,”  Diana said.  “A little nauseous, but I don’t know if that’s the baby or the chicken salad I had for lunch.”

“Baby,”  Dan muttered, shaking his head a little.  “A baby.  We’re having a baby!”

“We?”  Diana looked up at him, surprised.  He wasn’t leaving?

“Of course ‘we,”  Dan said, the corners of his mouth turning up into that crooked smile of his that she loved so much.  “You didn’t think I would make you do this alone did you?”

“Well, actually…”

“Diana, I love you,”  Dan said, firmly.  “Maybe this baby… No, I know this baby is some sort of a sign that we’re meant to be together.  This is a good thing!”

“What are you talking about?”

“I think we should get married,”  Dan said, falling to kneel in front of her.  “I might not have a ring - or the means to afford one - but I love you, Diana.  Marry me?”

Diana wasn’t sure what made her do it, but she heard herself say yes.

Blush

Ever since she was a young girl, Diana imagined what her wedding day would be like, but what girl didn’t?

She was going to be a beautiful bride, in a long white dress with lace sleeves, and a veil that reached her lower back.  She would have baby’s breath in her hair and shoes so tall she could barely walk.

She never anticipated she would be standing in the bathroom of a seedy Portland chapel, donning a blush colored dress she’d bought on a clearance rack that barely reached her knees, and was obviously tight around her swollen abdomen.

“Di, honey?”  Dan cracked open the door, peeking in.  It was the ladies’ room, but she didn’t care.  It wasn’t as if anyone else was in there anyway.  “Are you nearly ready?”

“I’ll be right there,”  She brushed off the front of her dress and took one final look at herself.  Not bad.  She straightened the small white flower in her hair and forced a smile onto her face.  She was going to be happy today.  She was getting married.

She walked out of the bathroom and Dan grinned at her.

“You look beautiful,”  He said, taking her hand in his own.

“Not so bad yourself,”  She wasn’t lying, for someone with hardly a penny to his name, he cleaned up quite nicely in a gray suit and a tie that matched her dress.

“Shall we?”  He offered her an elbow and she took it.  It was now or never.

“I can’t believe I’m marrying the most beautiful girl in the world,”  Dan said, and there was a definite pep to his step.

Diana didn’t respond, but she was almost certain she was blushing.

Red

“Keep them closed.”

“Dan, this is ridiculous!”

“Just a little further…”  Dan steadied her shoulders as Diana hobbled along, blindfolded.  He was insisting whatever surprise he had in store was worth the stubbed toe she’d received from the stray stone he didn’t warn her about.

“Okay… nearly there aaand…”  Dan wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, resting his head on her shoulder.  “Open!”

Diana pulled the blindfold from her eyes and blinked in the sunlight.  “Where are we, Dan?”

“Welcome home, love,”  He kissed her cheek before waving a set of keys in front of her nose.

She looked up to see a small house, with crumbling cream colored siding and a roof that was missing a few shingles.  The driveway had a pothole that looked as though it could pop a tire, and the grass had more brown patches in it than green.

It was horrible, but Dan’s smile was so wide, she didn’t dare tell him so.

“It’s not much, I know,”  Dan said, taking her hand and leading her up the front stoop.  “But I figure we can fix it up a little and it’ll be a nice home for Baby.”  He reached down and patted her ever growing middle.

Speaking of Baby, her feet were aching so badly she would kill to sit down.  She hoped her darling husband had thought ahead far enough to buy some sort of furniture.

“Would you like to do the honors?”  Dan offered her the key, and she clasped in her palm.  This was her home now.  She supposed she would learn to like it.  What other choice did she have?

She took another good look and realized it wasn’t so bad.  Once she got ahold of a bucket of paint and some decent curtains, it would make a fine home, both for the baby and for themselves.

And if nothing else, she really loved that red door.

Blue

“You did it, Di,”  Dan’s voice was soft and hushed, as if he were afraid to speak any louder.  “You did it.”

Diana blinked up at him, her eyes wet and weary.  “I did it.”

“You did,”  A nurse said, placing a delicate bundle into her arms.  “Like a pro, at that.  Congratulations.”

Diana could barely believe her eyes.  In her arms laid the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.  More beautiful than the sun in the sky, than the rainbows after a good storm, than the sunflowers in the vase to her right.

Her son.

“Hello, love,”  She whispered, and she suddenly realized why Dan’s voice was so quiet.  She felt as though her normal volume would break this precious being in her arms.

“He’s perfect,”  She murmured, as Dan scooted beside her on the bed, kissing her temple and softly touching the baby’s gauzy striped hat.

“Takes after you, then,”  Dan said, and Diana could hear the proud smile in his voice.

Just then, the baby let out a little yawn, his face scrunching up into the cutest contortions.

“Someone has had a big day,”  Dan chuckled.

“Yeah, Mommy,”  Diana teased, fatigue settling in.  The word “mommy” felt so foreign, yet nice against her lips.  That was her!  She was Mommy!

The baby blew a little bubble of spit as his response, his eyelids slowly opening to reveal eyes of the most beautiful shade of blue.  Somewhere between the ocean and the night sky.

“Rest now, love,”  Dan carefully lifted the baby into his arms, holding him against his shoulder with natural-born expertise.  “I’ve got him for now.”

Yellow

Squeak, squeak!

The sound of the yellow rubber duck was disturbingly high-pitched, obnoxious, and made Diana’s skin crawl.

Squeak, squeak!

“I really hate that thing,”  Dan commented as he walked into the room, placing a towel on the counter-top.

Diana laughed.  It was as if he read her thoughts.  Ever since the baby came they seemed closer than ever.  It was as if their lives had finally fallen perfectly into place and she’d never felt happier.

Squeak, squeak!

“I see what you mean,”  Diana said, squeezing the toy again, much to the delight of the tiny boy who was bathing in the kitchen sink.  Too big for the baby bath but still too small for the bathtub, Dan’s mother had made the suggestion to use the sink.  Diana was appalled at first, but after a good, thorough scrubbing, she finally felt it was a safe place for her child’s soft skin and delicate behind.

Gabriel reached out to grab the duck himself, immediately stuffing it into his mouth.  He’s teething, Diana thought.  Getting so big, already.

Squeak, squeak!

“You, my friend, need to pick a less annoying toy,”  Dan scooped the baby from the sink, kissing his damp cheek, wrapping his small body in the towel.

Squeak, squeak!

“That’s what he thinks of that,”  Diana snorted, pulling the plug from the sink, watching as the water swirled down the drain.

“I guess that means it’s bedtime for our little man, hmm?”  Dan said, gently removing the duck from Gabriel’s hands, much to the boy’s chagrin.  “Come on, you don’t need to sleep with that old thing.”

Gabriel continued to fuss until Diana handed him the toy, his face instantly breaking out into a gummy grin.

Squeak, squeak!

“You, my love, are a complete and utter pushover,”  Dan said, shaking his head, while Diana just smiled, kissing the baby’s wet hair.

Raspberry

Diana leaned against the doorframe as she stepped into the living room, staying silent as she watched the sweet scene in front of her.

“Little pig, little pig, let me in!”  Dan boomed, bouncing Gabriel on his knee, holding a picture book open with his opposite hand.  “Not by the hairs on my chinny chin chin!”  He added, throwing his voice into a higher pitch.

Gabriel chewed on his hands, gurgling.

“Then I’ll huff… and I’ll puff… and I’ll blooow this house down!”  Dan said, blowing in the baby’s face, causing a round of giggles that brought an instant smile to Diana’s face.

“Daddy makes a good wolf doesn’t he?”  She said, sliding fully into the room, sitting on the floor beside Dan’s knee, ticking Gabriel’s belly.

Gabriel made a face as if he was blowing, and his parents grinned.

“Smart boy!”  Diana cheered, blowing on Gabriel’s hair, causing it to stand on end.  “Blooow this house down!”

Gabriel giggled, as Dan lifted him up and blew a raspberry into his belly.

“We’ve got one cute kid, you know that?”  Dan commented, before blowing another.

“I have to agree,”  Diana said, tickling Gabriel’s toes.  “I think we really lucked out with this one.”

Gabriel responded by blowing a raspberry of his own, causing not only himself to giggle, but both of his parents as well.

Green

“Honey, you need to sleep too,”  Dan gently pried the fussing baby from Diana’s grasp.  “You’ve hardly slept in days.”

“I can’t sleep when he cries like that,”  Diana said, picking up a little green teddy bear and dancing it in front of Gabriel’s reddened face.

“I know but -”

“Dan, something’s wrong, I can tell,”  Diana said, and left no room for argument as she took the baby back into her arms, still attempting to distract him with the bear.

“You heard the doctor, Di,”  Dan said, softly, as he gently wrapped an arm around her shoulder.  “It’s allergy season, he’s probably just uncomfortable.  You know how bad mine get this time of year.”

Diana shrugged him off as she rocked the baby in her arms, his cries muffled by her nightgown.  “I don’t believe them.”

“They’re the doctors, Di!”

“And I’m his mother!”  Diana shouted, causing Gabriel to cry even louder.  She took a deep breath and kissed the baby’s head.  He felt warm, but only slightly.  He was still teething, and her mother informed her that could spike a fever.  She prayed that’s all it was.  “This is more than just allergies, I know it is.”

Dan sighed, dragging his hand across his face.  “Fine.  We’ll take him in tomorrow.  Maybe… maybe we could get a referral for some sort of specialist or something.”

“Thank you,”  Diana said, quietly.  “Now, go back to bed.  I can handle it from here.”

Dan didn’t reply.  He simply leaned over and kissed her forehead so lightly she barely felt it, and headed back to their bedroom.

Black

Something wasn’t right.  She could tell.  Call it mother’s intuition, or luck, or sheer coincidence, but she knew.

She bolted out of bed so fast she nearly tripped, and ran straight for Gabriel’s nursery.  He was crying, which was nothing new… but this was a different cry.  This was a pained cry.  This was the sound of her baby begging for help.

“I’m here, sweetheart,”  Diana cooed, as she lifted Gabriel into her arms, holding him tightly against her shoulder.  “Mommy’s here now.”  She kissed his head, and was horrified to notice his fever had spiked even higher than before.

She wandered in circles over the shag carpet on the floor calling out to Dan for assistance.

“Shh, honey, it’s alright,”  Diana could hear the uncertainty in her own voice.  She didn’t know what to do.  She felt lost, trapped, confused.  This wasn’t the cry he used when he was hungry - in fact, he refused when she tried to bring him close to her chest to feed - , and he wasn’t wet.

“Dan!”  She called again.  She was certain that man could sleep through a car crashing through their bedroom window.

Gabriel let out a funny grunting noise, and she held him closer still as Dan drowsily entered the room.  “Di?”

“Something’s wrong,”  Diana said, unable to stop the tears from flowing down her cheeks.  “Very wrong.”

Dan rubbed his eyes, obviously not fully awake.  But he needed to be awake, damn it!  Their baby was sick!

“Dan!”  Diana practically yelled, her voice sounding more desperate as time went on.

Gabriel’s cries echoed against the walls, causing an ear-splitting sound until - 

“Gabe?”  Diana’s voice was soft and hoarse.

“What happened?”  Dan’s eyes were wide and alert now.  “Why’d he stop?”

“We have to go,”  Diana said, urgently.

Dan nodded, and they ran to the car, only stopping briefly for Diana to throw her black coat over her nightgown.

Tangerine

Dan crawled into bed beside Diana, but didn’t touch her as she nuzzled Gabriel’s baby blanket close to her face.

She didn’t blame him.  She knew she looked a right mess, she’d hardly left bed in over a week (she’d lost track of the days), only daring to leave to use the toilet.  Her hair was unwashed and unbrushed, she was certain her teeth had grown a new type of bacteria scientists could study, and she was so dehydrated from crying that her lips were cracked and red.

“Di, sweetie, I brought you some tea,”  Dan said, softly, gesturing toward her nightstand, where there were already two cups of abandoned tea, and three stale coffees.  “And a tangerine.  You need to eat something.”

“I hate tangerines… and I don’t want any damn tea,”  Diana said, startled by how raspy her voice sounded from disuse.  “I want my baby.”

Dan sighed.  “Diana… I know, believe me I do, but…”

“But what, Dan?”  Diana spat.  She was angry.  Not at her husband really, but he was the only one there to listen.  She was angry at herself, at the world, at whatever deity had caused this heartbreak in her life.  Heartbreak so painful and strong that it knocked the wind from her lungs and never fully returned.

“There’s nothing we can do about that now,”  Dan said, attempting to sound gentle, but to Diana’s ears sounded patronizing.  “Nothing we can do for him now.”

“I’m a terrible mother,”  Diana muttered, her anger fading away as fast as it appeared.  It seemed to come in waves, emotions did.  It was as if she had no control over herself anymore.  One moment she was sobbing bucketfuls into her pillow, the next she was throwing picture frames against the wall just to watch them shatter.

“No, you’re not,”  Dan said, but she didn’t believe him.  He would say whatever he thought she wanted to hear.  But he couldn’t tell her what she truly wanted to hear.  It would be a lie, and Dan was a terrible liar.

It’s not like she would believe him anyway.

All she wanted to hear was that it was all a big mistake.  A cruel practical joke.  That her baby was actually alive and well, and she could hold him again.

What she wouldn’t give to hold him again, even for a minute.

Diana buried her nose further into the blanket, staring at Dan’s precious cup of tea until the steam stopped rising and it grew just as cold as the rest.

Rainbow

Dan wasn’t happy with her.

It wasn’t the first time, of course.  She had done plenty of things to cause havoc in his life, but she had never seen him so upset before.

“She’s our daughter, Diana, you’re going to have to hold her eventually!”  His voice was tense, as if it took everything in him to keep his emotions under control.  The bags under his eyes seemed darker as his face reddened, and he was pacing grooves into the tile flooring.

“I…”  Diana didn’t know what to say.  It wasn’t as if she didn’t want to hold her new baby, because she did!  She wanted nothing more than to take that beautiful baby girl into her arms and hold her as tightly as she could, and kiss her cheeks while singing half forgotten lullabies… but something was holding her back.  It was as if she had an invisible vice holding her arms in place, keeping her from holding her newborn daughter.

“Come on, it’s time to go,”  Dan muttered, as a nurse walked into the room, a wheelchair in her hands.

“I’m sure you’re excited to get that baby home, hmm?”  The nurse either hadn’t heard the couple’s argument, or chose to ignore it.  Diana supposed she’d heard plenty of things in her time in the maternity ward.

“I know I can’t,”  Dan said, pointedly.  Diana looked down at her hands.

“Alright, Mom, I know it feels silly being wheeled out of here, but it’s hospital policy,”  The nurse helped Diana into the chair, before picking the baby up from the bassinet.

“Oh, I can take -”  Dan began, but before he could finish, the nurse plopped the pink bundle into Diana’s arms.

Diana froze.  She couldn’t move, she couldn’t speak, she couldn’t breathe.  The vice was back, and stronger than ever.

“Mrs. Goodman, are you ready to go now?”

Diana didn’t - couldn’t - reply.

Dan’s eyes softened, and he knelt down in front of Diana’s chair.  “Sweetheart, you can do this.”

Diana shook her head, the most movement she felt she could handle at the moment.

Dan rubbed up and down her arms, and it seemed to alleviate some of the tingling numbness coursing through them.  “Isn’t she beautiful?”

Diana finally took a good look at the baby in her arms.  She’d hardly allowed herself to even look at her daughter since they first plopped her onto her chest immediately after birth.  “She is.”

And she was.  She had dark curls covering the top of her head, deep brown eyes, and chubby cheeks the color of roses.  She looked a lot like Dan, but something about her nose was similar to Diana’s.

“It’s okay,”  Dan murmured, stroking the baby’s hair while Diana slowly adjusted her into a more comfortable position.  “You’ve got her.”

The baby let out a little fussy noise, and Diana stiffened.  This isn’t the same, she told herself.  This isn’t like before.

“That’s right, Natalie,”  Dan cooed, touching the baby’s tiny fingers.  “Mommy’s got you… you love Mommy, don’t you?”

Diana didn’t see how, as her mommy had hardly anything to do with her in her few days of life.

But Natalie seemed to agree with her father, for she let out a soft sigh, and snuggled deeper into Diana’s embrace.

“Let’s go home,”  Dan patted Diana’s knee before standing to his full height, taking the handles of her wheelchair and steering them toward the door.

Diana could hardly take her eyes off of Natalie the entire ride home.

[rafaelswaithe-archived]

Distractions

Summary: Requested by @perfectlystiles​ — “ opie winston + fem!reader maybe she get gets hurt in a fight and op freaks out and realizes he likes her and wants her to be his old lady?? “ Warnings: Guns, violence, language, drinking Pairing: Opie Winston (Sons of Anarchy) x Reader Word Count: 2798 Rating: M

The two of you had been doing this dance for months — since the first time that you’d come to one of the Sons’ parties with your friend.

You’d just broken up with your long-term boyfriend, the asshole having cheated on you, and you insisted that maybe this wasn’t a good idea, that you should stay home. You were sure that you wouldn’t be any fun to have around.

Still, she had insisted, telling you that you needed to get your mopey ass out of the house. You’d rolled your eyes, letting her pick out your cutest outfit and do your hair and makeup. “That piece of shit has no idea just what he’s missing,” she told you, looking you over before you headed out.

After a little less than half an hour at the party, your friend had gone off with one of the guys. She’d asked you about ten times if you were sure if it was okay, and you told her it was. Just because you were still healing from your breakup didn’t mean that she shouldn’t have a good time.

You sat at the bar, nursing your drink until soon, you felt someone slip onto the stool beside you. Glancing over, you spotted a man who despite his rough appearance, glanced back at you with soft, sweet eyes.

“Another beer, Ope?” the bartender asked, and he nodded, thanking her. He looked back at you for a moment and noticed that your glass of alcohol was nearly empty.

“And maybe another for…” he trailed off as if to ask your name.

“Y/N,” you answered, and he nodded. The bartender nodded as well, moving to make you another drink after trading out Opie’s empty beer bottle for a fresh one.

“Opie,” he spoke, offering his hand for you to shake, which you took, unable to help but notice just how much larger the male’s hands were than yours.

“Thanks… for that,” you said, gesturing to how the bartender was currently making your drink. “I was good for it, but I appreciate it.”

He gave you a small grin, “It’s not a problem. You’re a guest, after all,” he shrugged. After a moment, he spoke up again, “You’re not here alone, are you?” he questioned.

You smirked a bit at his question, shaking your head. “Technically, no. I came with a friend, but I think she’s off with one of your friends somewhere,” you replied, gesturing to the club’s logo on his kutte, as if to say that the guy your friend had walked off with was part of his club.

“Ahh, yeah. Depending on who pulled her away, your friend may be a while,” he laughed quietly. “You seem like this whole thing isn’t really your scene.”

You shrugged your shoulders, thanking the bartender quietly as she brought you your drink. “I’m in a funk lately. I’m usually a lot more fun.”

Opie’s head tilted as he looked you over, “Oh? Want to talk about it?” he asked. He kept the thoughts to himself that you looked incredibly well put together for someone who claimed to be in a funk.

You shook your head lightly, “Not really anything to talk about. Just a trash, cheating ex and the overly dramatic breakup. It’s a pretty boring story, really,” you said with a quiet laugh.

His brow furrowed at that, brow arching as you mentioned that you’d been cheated on. “That’s not boring. I’m sorry that happened to you,” he spoke.

Sure, several of the Sons still slept around, even if they had an Old Lady, but it had never been the life for him. He’d been married, and until Donna died and even afterward, he was faithful. It wasn’t until recently that he’d let himself start to have fun with other women again.

You took a long sip of your drink, nodding slowly, “You and me, both, Opie. I’m trying not to dwell on it too much, though. That’s why my friend brought me here — she thought that I needed a distraction.”

Opie hummed quietly, nodding as you spoke and he stroked his beard with the hand not holding his beer. “Well, I’d say that there’s definitely plenty to distract you here,” he replied, looking over at you with a grin.

——————————

Months later, you had made many more appearances at the club’s parties, even bringing your car to the garage when it needed a tune-up, in the off-chance that you’d see and get to talk to Opie.

The two of you had become close quickly. He found that he could confide in you without you judging him, and he gave you the same courtesy. You always seemed to make each other laugh, and you were able to calm each other down when the other was upset. You had even met and loved his kids.

It was evident to everyone around you that there were feelings between the two of you, but you were still hesitant. Part of him would always belong to Donna, and you weren’t sure if he would be able to fully give himself over to you. On top of that, it was still hard for you to trust anyone, even though he’d done nothing to break yours.

Regardless, you and Opie had been spending a lot of time together. You could always be found together when you weren’t working, and had built a true bond with one another.

Sitting on a bar stool in the clubhouse as you sipped from your drink, your eyes lit up as you saw the guys walking inside, Opie front and center with Jax and Clay. Your eyes moved over the guys’ features, trying to read if they had a good run or not, or if it was a good time to approach him.

Opie’s eyes moved over the bar, spotting you almost instantaneously. When your eyes met his, he nodded for you to come over to him. You set your drink down on the bar, moving from your stool and making your way over.

Once you were close enough, you placed your hands on his shoulders, intending to jump up and have him catch you, but he had other ideas. He stooped down once you were in arm’s reach, wrapping his arms around your legs and playfully tossing you over his shoulder.

“Opie!” you squealed, causing him and Jax to laugh while Clay rolled his eyes, continuing on his way the office. Your hands rested against his back and you tapped lightly to be put down. Once you were on your feet again, his arm remained around you, circling around your shoulders.

You moved your arm around his waist, walking toward the dorms with him to let him get cleaned up. As you were almost there, you saw one of the Crow Eaters slip into your and Opie’s path. You recognized the girl from the time that you’d spent at the clubhouse — Melanie, you thought her name was — and knew that she was especially fond of Opie.

He’d hooked up with her a few times in a drunken haze, then never again, seeing just how crazy she could be. Still, she’d never seemed to get the hint. She pushed her blond hair off of her shoulders, intending to give Opie that much better of a view of her cleavage, and you rolled your eyes.

“Hey, Ope,” she greeted, sly smile plastered onto her lips.

“Mel,” he nodded, starting to step around her to continue on his way, but she stepped into his path again.

Mel turned to you, then, “Hey sweetheart, why don’t you give Opie and I some alone time. Don’t worry, there’s plenty of other guys out there for you to choose from.”

She proceeded to reach out for him, to which he pulled away before she could touch him. “Mel, I already told you, this is never going to happen again.”

Melanie scoffed, shaking her head, “Why? Because of this bitch?” she asked, gesturing to you. Moving in closer to him again, you felt him stiffen, but you knew that he wouldn’t use force against her unless he felt that he had to. “Come on Opie. We had so much fun last time,” she drawled, voice sickeningly sweet as she dragged a finger down the center of his chest.

Your brow arched as she called you a bitch, and before you knew that you were doing it, you’d grabbed her hand from where it moved over Opie’s chest, reacting before even he did. “This bitch is about two seconds from kicking your ass if you don’t leave. Now. He said he wasn’t interested, now fuck off.”

Mel smirked, letting out an almost maniacal laugh at the thought of you kicking her ass. “You want to go? Let’s go,” she spoke, pulling a gun from her bag, pointing it at you, then Opie, then you again. “But, I fight dirty.”

Both you and Opie’s hands lifted as a sort of surrender, and he started to pull away from you, putting himself between you and Melanie, and you could tell that he was going to try and take the gun from her before she did something stupid.

“Mel.. put the gun down. Come on, don’t be stupid,” he started, keeping his hands up.

Mel shook her head, keeping the gun pointed at you, placing her finger on the trigger. “Don’t fucking call me stupid, Ope. You know, you and I could be so great together. I’m willing to bet you’ve never came as hard with her as you did with me.”

Opie shook his head, “I meant what I said, Mel. No more. You think pulling this crazy shit is going to make me want to be with you? Really?”

“Crazy is putting it mildly,” you murmured under your breath.

“What the fuck did you just say to me, bitch?” Mel spat, starting to move closer to you.

Before she could move much further, however, Opie grabbed her by the wrists, working to wrestle the gun out of her hands while her finger was still on the trigger.

Though he was stronger than most, Mel’s adrenaline had to be going a mile a minute because she fought tooth and nail to keep her hold on the gun and keep it pointed at you.

In the midst of their struggle, Mel’s finger slipped over the trigger, causing the gun to go off. Time seemed to move in slow motion as the bullet sped toward you, Opie basically tackling Mel to the ground and snatching the gun out of her reach.

“Y/N, move!” he yelled, trying to get you to move out of the line of fire in time.

As the bullet clipped your arm, you cried out in pain, falling to the floor. Of all of the places to be shot, you were sure this wasn’t nearly the worst, yet it still hurt like hell.

Several of the club members ran to investigate the gun shot, eyes widening at the scene that had unfolded. Opie’s eyes locked with Jax’s and he shoved Mel toward him, as well as her gun. “Get her ass out of here.”

Jax grabbed the gun, taking the ammunition out of it and passing it off to one of the other guys as Juice moved forward, grabbing Mel and hauling her outside.

Opie moved to your side, kneeling down beside you and pulling you into his embrace. He looked up at Jax as he removed his kutte, then his shirt, wrapping it around your wound and holding pressure. “Call Tara.”

Jax nodded, taking out his phone and dialing the doctor’s number, and Opie held you close to him.

“Hey… Y/N,” he spoke, voice soft and comforting. “Y/N, baby, you’re gonna be okay.”

He had seen plenty of people shot, and had even been the one doing the shooting, but this was different. You weren’t some gangbanger or outlaw. You were innocent. This was never supposed to happen.

“Opie…” you groaned softly, a quiet whine leaving your lips. “She fucking shot me.”

Opie bit down on his lip in the center, nodding lightly. “She did, but it’s okay. You’re going to be okay. Tara’s on the way and she’ll get you all fixed up.”

Your hand moved to cover his over your wound, turning your face into Opie’s shoulder. “Your taste in girls is questionable,” you sighed.

Opie couldn’t help but laugh at that, shaking his head. Looking down at you, his eyes scanned your features. “Not always.”

——————————

Once you’d been all stitched up and Tara cleared you, she’d given you some pain medicine and told you to take it easy. Through it all, Opie had barely left your side, and you were beyond thankful for him.

Days later, you laid in his bed in the dorms, curled up on your good side beneath his blankets as you inhaled his scent on his pillows, allowing it to comfort you.

The door opened after a few minutes, Opie letting himself into the room and closing the door behind him. Looking over your shoulder, you gave him a small smile. “Hey…”

“Hey, how are you feeling?” he asked, starting to change his clothes and get more comfortable.

You turned to look away from him again as you saw him changing clothes, wanting to give him at least a little privacy if he wanted it. “I’m okay, I guess. Still pretty sore.”

Opie nodded, changing into a pair of pajama pants and a wife beater tank. Crawling into bed beside you, he propped his head up with one hand, reaching out with the other and lightly tucking a few loose strands of hair behind your ear. “I wanna talk to you about something,” he spoke quietly.

Your head tilted at that and you nodded, “Okay… yeah, anything,” you agreed, leaning into his touch a bit as his fingers moved over your hair.

“So, the other day when everything went down, I’d actually been planning to talk to you then, but all of that kind of delayed it,” he started.

Nodding, you reached out, fingers lightly stroking over his beard, making him smile just barely as you waited for him to continue.

“All of this, it scares the shit out of me. I can deal with the guns, and drugs, and violence, and even rivalries within the club, but this is something else entirely. When I’m with you, I feel things that I haven’t felt since I was first with Donna.”

You bit down on your lip in the center as he mentioned Donna, and his thumb moved to soothe over your lower lip, lightly releasing it from your teeth. You pressed the softest of kisses to his thumb, and he let out a sigh.

“These feelings? They scare me, and I know that they scare you too,” he continued. “But, all of that the other day? It makes me see that I need to just man up and tell you how I feel.”

Your head tilted curiously as you looked at him, and you could hear and feel your heartbeat in your ears as you waited for him to go on. “And how do you feel, Opie?”

Opie sighed again, glancing down toward the bed. Hesitating for only a moment, he leaned in, pressing his lips to yours.

Your brows arched, eyes widening slightly before closing, returning his kiss with ease. Your hand lifted, cupping his cheek as you kissed him, letting out a soft moan at the feel of his lips against yours.

After several moments of kissing you, he pulled back, resting his forehead against yours. “I want you to give me a shot. I like you. You’re one of my closest friends and I care about you. I want you to be mine. Let me be yours, and let me protect you so nothing like this ever happens again.”

In all of the time that you and Opie had spent together over the last several months, you’d always had feelings for him, lying beneath the surface. When you had met, you were still getting over your ex, and you’d pushed any and all feelings down, not wanting to get hurt again. Despite all of that, Opie had still found his way into your heart.

“Yours… like be your Old Lady?” you asked.

Opie’s thumb brushed against your cheek and he nodded, “If that’s what you want.”

You hummed softly, leaning in and pressing another soft kiss to his lips. “I like you too, Ope. Let’s give this a try and see how it goes.”

At your response, he grinned widely, “And here I was thinking that the club life wasn’t your scene,” he teased.

You rolled your eyes playfully, shaking your head. “I told you, I was in a funk. You got me out of it.”

[cnc-hoebayb]

The boys as supportive hype men bfs

For when you’re lookin extra fine and they just wanna hype the shit outchu

.

Zabdiel

-“dimelooo mamiii”

-literally that ^ but with different inflections on dif syllables everytime depending on mood/situation lol

-not a very big social media man, but will post a quick story of you like “🥴❤️” dressed in something reeeeaal nice then delete it later (bc he want u for his eyes only duH!)

-but in public tho !!

-wow

-that’s his game, he’d be huggin all up on you like no ones watching

-Defintely would get caught by the paparazzi for some “provocative touching/staring” with each other

-Buys you everything

-flowers in that little shop on the corner? Done. Ice cream on the street that looks way too good? Chocolate vanilla swirl it is.

-Would probably go all out and buy you a new fancy piece of jewelry too

-its his own lil ritual to get u a new pair of earrings that match with the particular outfits he loves to see you in uwu

-he honestly seems like he’d want to hype you up all day but then spend the rest of the night with you in private

-hype you up in his own personal way ayooo

-details? I think a lil bit

-whisper dirty praises in your ear about how good you look

-goes in between rough and tender touches over his favorite parts of your body

-dead eye contact the whole time so it’s super intimate

-k that’s all u get u thirsty hoes

Erick

-does that thing to random strangers like “that’s my gf” and points at u

-for literally anything

-like when you’re ordering food for you both at a fast food place and he’s watching you lookin snackish tell them you’d like two number 5’s

-he leans over to the old lady next to him like “that girl- mi novia 😉”

-he’s also very vocal

-just likes you or him (or both) to be the center of attention

-“SHES WALKING IN AND SHES SO HOT GUYS WATCH UR FUCKING SELVES”

-kinda embarrassing but at the same time so sweet and way flattering so u don’t front bout it

-doesn’t really show you off on social media, but more in public or to his family

-Just wants to show his favorite ppl his fav person and how amazing you are

-compliments you all day

-really bad pick up lines mostly

-but they’re so bad that they’re actually really cute and funny

-pretends that youre a stranger at a store and hits on you like you’ve never met before

-“Erick please not here,” you’d beg while in line at the busy concession stand of the movie theater

-“im jus asking if u as sweet as those cookie dough bites u got right there mami mmhmmm”

Joel

-literally the cutest of them all

-not super extra, but very lovey and sweet

-you’d walk in the room all dolled up and he’d be super star struck like “oh my god dude you’re so beautiful”

-for literally any outfit too tho

-You can walk in with his sweatpants and necklace on and he’d lose it just as hard

-stares at you all day

-buys you flowers just for the heck of it

-sweet gentle touches and kisses all day too

-when he talks about you in public it’s all super down to earth and him saying how gorgeous you are doing anything

-takes you out to show you off

-somewhere where he knows a lot of press and people in general will be

-makes it super obvious you’re there together

-“don’t worry HONEY, I’ll grab the door for you BABE” and looks other homies dead in the eyes for dominance purposes

-he really would take you anywhere to show you off tbh. The dog park, museum, grocery store, you name it

-he fills his camera roll with candid pics of you through the day

-when you guys get really rowdy at the end of the night bc you’re tired, he records you the whole time dancing n singing and being a crackhead

-but its wholesome content of you guys being happy in love and having so much fun :,)

-he posts it all and everyone is like “couple goals wowo” and it makes your heart melt bc you’re with someone who makes you confident and happy and he’s everything

Richard

-literally not one second where his hand would be off of you

-ESPECIALLY in public

-hand in your back pocket, on your waist, in your hand

-also the type of guy that would be super extra and do things like hold the door for you dramatically, carry you over potholes or puddles in the street like “no te preocupes amor, i gotchu”

-a master at subtly tho

-and subtle teasing

-would mention how fine you look at the beggining of the day with a low whisper in your ear and a hot neck kiss

-then totally drop it for tension purposes

-would ignore u in person for a bit or maybe he just doesn’t see you much that day

-then would post a fire pic of you like “sheeesh🥵”

-comments under all your recent pics suddenly with thirsty shit

-all the fans are freaking out like “GET UR MAN”

-but he’s still avoiding you personally bc he knows it gets you all riled up

-so you watch him post and hype you all day until he gets home finally and wants to touch you and love you

-and you’re like “NO! No touching bc u can’t play these games Camacho”

-He smiles at you and puts on his nasally play voice while swooping in to lift you off your feet, tickling your sides and kissing you all over

-“mira que sexy ohmygaaad”

-ok but also

-he’d take his time with you when it got down to business, letting you know everything going through his mind when he kisses you, every time he removes another piece of clothing, telling you how perfect you are

-slow passionate intense nights that feel like they could last forever

Christopher

-constant screaming

-“oye mamiiiii”

-his million stories on insta are all of you with dif filters, emojis, and captions

-he’s singing or yelling in the background every one, but honestly no one can tell at this point

-besos every other second

-you’re just *taking a bite of pizza* and Chris would drop everything like “fucK pls kiss me now”

-a lot of seductive glances from a distance

-intimidates everybody in the room tbh

-will be that guy talking to anyone being like “doesn’t my baby look ultra fine today- well i mean she always fine, but today it just hits different”

-probably very sweet like Joel but in his own sappy Chris way

-will sing to you every love song that comes on in the car or while you’re standing around

-dances with you in public just to spin you around, kiss you, and tell you how good you look

-you’re always afraid to look like that one annoying pda couple but the way y’all make it look is actually rly sweet and sincere

-also does that thing and records you being a crackhead at night, but he’s actin just as wild so all the videos are so hard to follow

-they’re all of you guys SCREAMING and CACKLING SOO HARD and no one can form out anything anyone is saying bc you’re both just being idiots

-he records you dancing like a dummy in the dark corner of your room and he’s just there like “AYY AY DALE MAMI AY”

-for some reason i just see him at the end of the night wanting a long, deep makeout sesh more than anything

-bc sometimes kissing can be just as intimate and passionate when you’re with the right person, and Chris is exactly that guy

-he’d be kinda vocal and mumble every time your lips disconnect abt how much he loves you and how crazy you make him by being so god damn beautiful all the time

[language-of-love]

sweater weather: knitting and scarves…

This is the 2nd part of my sweater weather series. These prompts were submitted by a bunch of you either alone or together (@hullomoon @softjakeperalta and two nonnies). (1300 words, G rated, AO3) I did a unique POV for this one, so I hope you like it!

🍂

“I promise, it’s just yarn. She left the cat hair at home.”

Sally looks up from her seat at the head of the folding table over at David and Patrick by the counter, interest peaked as she hears herself being spoken about. Patrick looks paler than normal, which is actually alarming considering his usual ivory complexion. David had been very clear about Patrick’s allergy, so she’d taken precautions, making sure all the tools she brought for this workshop are free of cat hair and dander. It had given her a good excuse to do a long overdue sanitation.

Looking back at her small gathering of aspiring knitters, she does a quick scan of everyone’s progress to see who might need a bit of guidance.

“Twyla, make sure that yarn is beneath both needles,” she says as she stands to correct Twyla’s fingers. 

The colors of the yarn strewn about the table are a true cornucopia of autumn hues, bright oranges and deep maroon, chocolate brown and even some moss green. Gwen, however, is using jet black and seems to be knitting a mask of some sort, but Sally has learned to just roll with the punches where Gwen is concerned. In a town full of odd ducks, Gwen swims in a pond all her own. Plus, with this being Sally’s first knitting workshop at Rose Apothecary, she aims to just give everyone a fun time and hopefully learn a thing or two (and maybe buy enough merchandise to make David and Patrick want to have her back).

Glancing back over at the counter, she sees Patrick leaning against the register, eyes focused somewhere over Sally’s shoulder. There’s a fond look on his face with a small smile and warm eyes, a not unfamiliar expression whenever she’s caught him in a similar condition. She’d bet good money that David is standing behind her, probably just stocking a shelf or dusting or something equally innocuous. Patrick is the definition of smitten where David is concerned and Sally thinks it’s just the cutest thing she’s ever seen. Sure, David is lovestruck, too, but there’s just something about Patrick’s big round eyes and how whenever David is around there just isn’t anyone or anything else he’d rather see. 

“Hey Sally, I’m getting all tied up here,” Lena calls out, prying Sally’s attention back to the task at hand. Rushing over, she chuckles kindly as Lena lifts her hands and is, indeed, tied in knots. It takes almost ten minutes to extricate her and get her started again, but it proves to be a good primer for the rest of the group as they watch Lena get back on the right track. 

“Everything going okay over here?” David asks as he appears at Sally’s side, his usual congenial smile in place, doing a pretty good job of masking the simmering anxiety that always seems to live somewhere on David’s face. 

“Going great, David. Thanks again for including me in your Autumn Workshop Series. Every little bit of promotion helps, as you obviously know.” 

That anxiety Sally was referring to, it escapes David on a knowing sigh, his facade slipping away as he leans his hip against the shelving. “Oh man, it’s tough, but as long as we all have each other’s backs, we’ll have a good season.”

“Agreed! You guys will be at Saturday’s craft fair in Elmdale, right?”

He straightens at that and sends a wide grin over Sally’s shoulder at Patrick. “We’re sponsoring the awards. And don’t tell him I told you, but that was one of Patrick’s better ideas.”

Sally leans in, whispering under her breath, “Your secret is safe with me. But if you keep smiling at him like that, I think the jig will be up.”

David’s cheeks turn rosy and his eyes shoo away from his partner towards the door and Sally smiles, soaking up as much of the good energy she can from these two before she has to head home to her apartment. It’s been a few years since she lost her beloved Jim and the quiet at home can be overwhelming sometimes. One benefit of small town living though is you never have to be alone for long, unless you want to be. And sure, she never could have imagined that she’d find such joy in the romantic comings and goings of two men, but if you live long enough you eventually come to learn that the less boundaries put on love, the greater joy there is to be found in the world. And David and Patrick, they bring joy to everyone around them.

The workshop ends with everyone promising to check out Sally’s website (the one Alexis helped her get set up that she has no idea how to update) and call her if they have any questions. She lets everyone know that she’ll email them if another workshop gets planned, which David assures everyone will definitely happen. After gathering up all of her supplies, she gratefully accepts Patrick’s help loading everything into her car.

“You can just toss it all in the trunk, thank you, Patrick.”

“No, thank you, Sally, we loved having you.”

Patrick closes the trunk and follows Sally back to the door to get the last of her things. 

“Next time we should make David sit and try to knit something. I have a sneaking suspicion he’d actually be really good at it,” she ventures, imagining David’s meticulous nature could make him an excellent knitter.

“He’d either master it immediately or get completely frustrated, both of which would be endlessly entertaining,” Patrick agrees with a smile. They both laugh as they walk back into the store together.

Reaching into her big bag perched on the folding table, she pulls out two scarves she’d tied up back home with white ribbon.

“Patrick, I wanted to give these to you and David. Just to say thank you, for everything.” Patrick’s eyes widen slightly and she laughs, quickly adding, “They’re cat hair free, only the best yarn for my two favorite guys.”

David steps out of the back room at that moment and crosses over to stand next to Patrick, his smile making it clear he’d heard mention of a gift.

“Oh Sally, you shouldn’t have,” David says as he reaches out for the scarves, looking down to see his name is on one label and the other is for Patrick. Handing Patrick his, David unties the ribbon and lets the scarf unfurl, revealing navy blue ends fading into a jet black center. Patrick does the same and sees that his is the opposite, with black on each end with the same navy in the middle. Sally watches as the two men take in their gifts and both smile almost simultaneously, first at each other and then over at Sally.

“These are perfect, Sally, really…” Patrick says softly as he lifts his new scarf over his head and places it over his shoulders. 

But David, he does the unexpected, stepping forward and drawing Sally into a slightly awkward hug. She smiles into the much taller man’s shoulder, giving his back a gentle pat before he pulls back with a crooked smile.

“I’m so glad you like them. You both seem to have a signature color and I just loved seeing how they worked together in such a beautifully simple way. Much like the two of you, but I won’t embarrass you further with my old lady ramblings.”

They both stumble over their own tongues in an attempt to reassure her that she’s not old and other nonsense, but she just smiles and shuffles them back to work as she heads out the door. As she’s turning the corner, she looks back into the window and catches them wrapped in an embrace, both of them now wearing their new scarves as they share a kiss. 

The joy in Sally’s heart bubbles over into her chest, thankful her small gifts were appreciated. And now, as the weather grows colder, she’ll see them both around town wearing her scarves, reminding her love can often be found in the most unexpected of places.